Run to You: Tales of Meiji 16
by aka Arashi
Summary: The Post-Revenge Arc Continuation Story that Sony never made! Just a touch brighter than the Seishou hen (New OVA's). Sanosuke returns to Japan and the Kenshin-gumi are swept up in a sinister plot. Ch 19: Conflict arises between the Wolf and the Rooster.
1. Prologue

Author's Comments

In case you're wondering, you just stumbled onto a massive fanfic I've been writing since the end of Spring Semester 2001. I've seen the entire series, read all the translations for the manga, and now own all 28 volumes of it. (so what if it's in Japanese, there's still pretty pics to look at!) This story begins with "Cherry Blossoms in the Spring" and I've rewritten the special extra story here in the prologue. (the end of it at least) From here it's no holds barred as Sano returns from his world travels and the Kenshin-gumi gets swept up in a sinister plot aimed at destroying the Meiji government. Expect Action, Adventure, Romance, Humor, Angst, and everything else you come to expect from a series as cool as Rurouni Kenshin. Also, the entire story is a SPOILER so beware!

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Just to let everyone know in advance, this fic's central character is Sanosuke. "Run to You" is a story about Sano the way "Rurouni Kenshin" is a story about Kenshin. (not saying this is anywhere near as cool as RK but let me explain what I mean) In "Rurouni Kenshin" there are times when Kenshin isn't present and we get to see stories about the other characters. In "Run to You" Sano isn't always there and other characters will get plenty of time in the spotlight, but Sano IS the main character. The main characters I'm focusing on are Sano/Megumi, Aoshi/Misao, and Yahiko/Tsubame. Kenshin is married to Kaoru and they have their son Kenji and there's not much more to cover between those two, except to take a look at their married life. This fic focuses on the same things that Rurouni Kenshin focuses on. Action is one of the main focuses, angst plays a big part, and humor is there to lighten the mood. Romance takes a step up in importance in "Run to You" compared to Rurouni Kenshin.

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With "Run to You" I plan on tying lose ends left at the end of the manga. If you're like me, you saw "Cherry Blossoms in the Spring" more like a prologue than an epilogue. There are plenty of characters who's lives were not resolved at the end of the manga. (and anime) I'm mostly planning on tying Sano's loose ends, but quite a few other people will be taken care of as well. But before there can be any resolution, there must be some fun. There's a huge cast of bad guys (many of which we've already met) as well as good guys. (you already know most of them, I'm not adding any superfilous good guys) There's plenty of humorous situations as well as serious ones. "Run to You" is full of plot so if you don't like plot you're not going to enjoy it! :) And that's all I'm going to say for now so I don't ruin the fun! Please read and review! I'm looking for any comments/suggestions/questions that you might have. Feedback is important to me and keeps me going!

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Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

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**Run to You: Tales of Meiji 16**

**Prologue**

"MONGOLIA!??" Surprise, shock, and indignation were readable on each of their faces. Kenshin paused a moment before he continued reading the letter.

"After that departure, I took a tour to America, then to Europe and then to Arabia and I've had a very good time so far. I'll be around here for a little while and then I'll go back to Japan, so get a delicious bowl of white rice and miso soup for me upon my arrival, ok?" Kenshin smiled and sighed contentedly. "See ya." The others were practically boiling over in frustration and confusion.

Megumi blurted out, "Does that idiot mean to cross the entire world?" At the same moment Kaoru also shouted, "What the heck is he thinking?"

"Does he mean to be an adventurer?" Yahiko asked in confusion. Kenshin just sat there thinking happily to himself, the smile still on his face. As Kenshin absently folded the letter, Megumi noticed a flash of writing on the back and familiar characters scrawled out in Sanosuke's terrible handwriting. _Fox Lady._

"Let me see that." Megumi snatched the letter away from Kenshin's hand. She turned the letter around while the others watched her curiously. As she read she started fuming. Piqued by curiosity, Yahiko grabbed the letter away from the indignant woman and read out loud.

"Oh by the way, make sure Fox Lady knows I'm coming back." Megumi tried to steal the letter away from Yahiko as he read. He deftly avoided her lunge and finished reading without missing a beat. "She better be ready!"

"I have no idea what that idiot is talking about." Megumi turned her head to the side and stoked her hand through her long black hair, straightening a few stray strands. "What exactly am I supposed to be ready for?"

"I think Sano just wanted to make sure that we informed you of his imminent return Megumi-dono." Kenshin put in happily. "After all, you do live in Aizu. How could he know that you'd be here while we were reading the letter?"

Megumi boiled over it for a few minutes while the others started eating. _That idiot takes off for 5 years and thinks he can just walk right back into his old life._

"Boy, Sano's sure been gone for a long time. A lot has happened since he left." Yahiko mused aloud through a mouthful of food. "You think he's changed?" Everyone looked at each other in silence for a moment, pondering the question. As one they burst out laughing (except Aoshi, of course). Each one of them shook their heads and answered at the same moment.

"Nope."

"Doubt it."

"Stupid question."

"We can hope can't we?"

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What better place to start than where Watsuki left off!? If you haven't seen/read "Cherry Blossoms in the Spring" I suggest you go find it! (my site has a link to Serizawa Kamo's Translation Index which has a link to picture and text files of the extra story)

By the way, my website www.kenkaya.com is centered around this fic and contains my fan art inspired by the story. For the FULL effect and most recent chapters check it out and let me know what you think!

Did I mention that I really really really want some feedback? This is a massive project and I need all the encouragement I can get to continue! Heck, if you think it sucks, let me know that I shouldn't be wasting my time! (hehe, you need to read to about chapter 11 before you tell me not to write anymore though!)

Well, what are you waiting for! Go on to chapter 1! (you'll meet the 'new' people at the dojo!)


	2. Chapter 1: New Faces in the Dojo

Chapter 1: New Faces in the Dojo 

Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

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**Chapter 1: New Faces in the Dojo  
One Week Later  
**

"Ok, now I want you to do fifty more strokes. Ready? Begin!" Yahiko paced the floor of the dojo wearing his practice uniform, the sakabatou at his side. The room was full of young students all wearing the practice outfits of the Kamiya Kasshin Dojo and swinging their bamboo swords in the air. Yahiko walked the line and inspected each of their techniques. Flashbacks to all the time he'd spent swinging his shinai filled his mind. He had been so enthusiastic about learning Kamiya Kasshin Ryu that even the boring exercises didn't seem that bad in his mind as he looked back over the years. As he watched the young aspiring swordsmen a smile crept to his face. _Now I'm Master of the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu. Master Myoujin Yahiko._

As he watched the students complete their set of swings he noticed one of the young apprentices was having a little trouble with his form. Higashidani Outa was screwing up the footwork again. 

"Outa, step forward with your other foot." Yahiko told the young boy as he walked over in front of him. When Outa looked at Yahiko in confusion he continued, "You have to step forward with your right foot as you swing. If you're right handed it helps to bring more power into the swing itself." Yahiko took Outa's shinai in hand and demonstrated. "You see?"

Outa nodded meekly and said, "Hai." A faint blush crept up on his face in embarrassment.  
"Now you do it." Yahiko said handing the shinai back to the student. Outa took the shinai in a two handed grip and a look of concentration came over his face. He stepped forward with his correct foot and brought the bamboo sword down with enough force to create a puff of wind. Yahiko smiled. "Excellent, now do 'that' fifty more times." Outa's shoulders slumped as he began his set from the beginning. The other students were almost halfway done with their practice swings.

Another smile turned the corners of Yahiko's lips as he thought to himself; once again, how strange it was to be teaching Sanosuke's little brother. Even stranger was the fact that Outa was living there at the dojo for the summer while he took lessons. Yahiko never would have believed that the kid was Sano's brother if Kenshin and Kaoru hadn't been so sure. He really seemed to be the exact opposite of Sano. Slowly Yahiko had started to see more of Sano's personality come out in Outa. And whenever Outa wore around his shirt with the makeshift character of evil sewn on the back, Yahiko could see the family resemblance. When he wore 'aku' on his back he seemed to become a different person. And more than once Yahiko had seen Outa's determination and bravery. But usually he was, submissive, shy, and quiet. _Probably a result of his overprotective childhood._ Yahiko mused to himself.

The sound of footsteps alerted Yahiko to a late arrival to the practice session. Yahiko turn and shot Tsukayama Yutarou a narrow eyed look as the young man casually walked into the dojo. "And where have you been?"

"Sorry I'm late, I was out having some fun last night and I accidentally slept in." Yutarou's yawn seemed to confirm his tiredness. In turn, Yahiko scowled at him angrily and was about to yell at him when he noticed a woman and a young boy following Yutarou in. "Oh and by the way, we have a new prospective student. This is Fujita Tsuyoshi and his mother. They wanted to stop by and check the place out before Tsuyoshi starts taking lessons."

Yahiko decided there would be time to chew Yutarou out later so he ignored him and walked toward the woman and the boy. He looked them over, appraising them, as he approached. Reading people was a skill he was trying to perfect, after all. But whatever he may have learned from his appraisal was cut short as he noticed a significantly more important thing: the woman was hot! Her hair was done up in a traditional Japanese style and her kimono hugged the curves of her body in a way that made Yahiko uncomfortably aware of the fact that he had recently entered into what Kenshin and Kaoru called 'young adulthood.' Not enjoying the warm sensation that was starting to creep up his neck, Yahiko turned his focus to the young boy. There was an air about him. Yahiko noticed it immediately and could sense the boy's potential. _This one comes from a long line of samurai._ Yahiko was sure of it. "Hello, I'm Myoujin Yahiko, teacher of the Kamiya Kasshin Dojo."

"Please to meet you Yahiko-san." The beautiful woman bowed her head respectfully. "I am Fujita Tokio and this is my son." She indicated the young boy. The fluidity of her movements only served to enhance her beauty. Even her voice was attractive. The young boy stepped forward and bowed his head to Yahiko.

"I, Fujita Tsuyoshi, would be honored to learn the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu at this dojo." The young boy spoke politely. The two of them seemed to be perfect examples of proper custom and courtesy, something that Yahiko wasn't all that used to. He was more accustomed to people throwing things at him.

"Well, we'd be glad to have you join us." Yahiko returned with a smile at the boy. The boy looked up at him proudly. Yahiko once again could see the boy's potential in the determination that flashed in his eyes. Something about the boy seemed oddly familiar to Yahiko, but the feeling passed away quickly. He invited Tsuyoshi and his mother for a tour of the dojo as Yutarou took over the training of the other students.

In the back, Yahiko came across Kenshin, Kaoru, and their young son Kenji. Kaoru was standing beside Kenji as he practiced with his little bamboo sword. Kenshin was doing the laundry. The scene was a familiar one about the Kamiya Kasshin Dojo. "Oi Kaoru, we have a new potential student!" Yahiko called over to Kaoru who looked up from Kenji to appraise the visitors. She came over to the boy and his mother and greeted them.

"Hello, I'm instructor Himura Kaoru, pleased to meet you."

"I'm Fujita Tokio and this is my son Tsuyoshi. He wants to learn kenjutsu here at your dojo." Over by the laundry bucket Kenshin slowly raised his head and looked over in their direction. Yahiko noticed a look of concentration on Kenshin's face as he gazed at Tokio. Kaoru was oblivious as she continued to chat with the mother and her son. As they talked Yahiko stood watching Kenshin. Kenshin noticed and the two of them exchanged a glance. In one glance the two of them had a conversation. "Is there something wrong?" Yahiko's eyes seemed to ask Kenshin. And Kenshin's look replied, "No, it's nothing to worry about." A small smile spread itself across the red haired man's face. Yahiko realized that Kenshin had just figured something out and he silently hoped he'd hear about it later. Kaoru interrupted any further non-verbal conversations by calling Kenshin over.

"This is my husband Himura Kenshin." Kenshin smiled cheerily as Kaoru introduced him to their guests. A knowing look passed between Tokio and Kenshin, unnoticed by Kaoru and Yahiko.

"Hello Himura-san, my husband has told me much about you." Kaoru and Yahiko had a moment of confusion and that whole "have you two met before?" look was on their faces. Tokio was smiling sweetly as she greeted Kenshin like a long lost friend.

"And how is Saitoh doing, Tokio-dono?" Kenshin asked politely, cheery smile still on his face. Neither of them seemed to be surprised at all by this conversation but Kaoru, Yahiko, and even Tsuyoshi looked shocked. Kaoru and Yahiko were standing with their mouths open staring at Tokio. The young boy pulled on his mother's kimono and quietly asked, "Mom, how come that man knows Dad's real name?"

"This man is Himura Battousai that your father has told you about." The boy turned a shocked look over at Kenshin. He all but whispered to his mother, "But Mom, he doesn't look very strong."

Kenshin smiled and knelt down to be at eye level with the young boy. "I'm not Himura Battousai anymore, now I'm just Himura Kenshin, a husband and a father." Yahiko and Kaoru were still standing there with their mouths open. Yahiko slowly raised a hand and pointed at Tokio.

"You're you're you're Saitoh's WIFE?" He stammered.

She turned her sweet smile to Yahiko. "Of course." Yahiko was floored. _How could Saitoh be married to a beautiful, polite, ladylike woman? What does she see in a monster like him?? _These thoughts ran through Yahiko's head and went straight into Kaoru's. The two of them turned to look at each other, exchanging their feelings by the look on their faces. At least they were BOTH shocked, it was nice to have someone to fall back on.

As Kenshin had a few more words with the young boy, another realization dawned on Yahiko. He almost jumped back from the boy as he pointed down at him and stammered again, "Then that means that you're his his SON!"

"AH! Saitoh's son!!" Kaoru said and jumped back. The boy looked at Kaoru and Yahiko in confusion.

"Mom, Dad was right. The Battousai's friends ARE really weird."

"Just a minute you! I'm Kenshin's WIFE, not just some friend!" Kaoru said stepping back toward Tsuyoshi, hand instinctively pulling up one sleeve of her kimono threateningly. This time it was Tsuyoshi's turn to step back in fear. Kenshin stood up with a nervous smile and held up his hands in an attempt to calm his wife.

"You two need to relax a little. Come on, let's go inside and have some lunch. Tokio-dono would you and your son care to join us?" Tsuyoshi looked like he'd rather not but Tokio gladly accepted the invitation. Kenshin and Tokio headed inside with the young Tsuyoshi at his mother's heels. Kaoru and Yahiko stood outside for a while thinking to themselves.

"I can't believe it." Kaoru said.

"Me either." Yahiko agreed. Meanwhile, Kenji continued to swing his little shinai over his head, oblivious to all the confusion going on around him.

Kenshin set about making lunch and Tokio quickly volunteered her services. The two of them whipped up a lunch that rivaled anything Yahiko had ever seen Kaoru and Kenshin cook.

"Wow Tokio-dono, you sure are a good cook!" Yahiko said as he helped himself to another rice ball. "Even with all her cooking lessons Kaoru will never be able to cook like you!" Yahiko's head and a flying rice bowl quickly became acquainted. Kaoru sat fuming and glaring at Yahiko.

"Watch your mouth Yahiko! How about you show a little appreciation for everything that I've done for you once in a while? You could at least PRETEND you like my cooking!"

"I like your cooking." Kenshin put in happily as he munched away at his lunch. "But I have to admit you're an excellent cook too Tokio-dono."

"You flatter me Himura-san." Tokio said good-naturedly. She smiled and laughed quietly and the whole time Yahiko still couldn't get over the idea that she was Saitoh Hajime's wife. Kenji and Tsuyoshi silently eat their lunch, both ignoring the other people in the room.

"So you still haven't answered my question Tokio-dono. How is your husband doing these days?" Tokio looked at Kenshin for a moment before continuing.

"I think he's doing well. It's hard to say with him sometimes because his situation can change so quickly. When I last spoke to him everything seemed to be going alright."

"That's good to hear. I wonder how he's doing from time to time so it's good to hear news of him."

"He'd be touched to hear you say that Himura-san." Yahiko almost spit out his food. Kaoru looked like she was finding it a little hard to swallow as well. Neither of them thought Saitoh would care at all to hear that Kenshin was concerned for him. _Maybe she's married to a different Saitoh Hajime who uses Fujita Gorou as a code name?_ Yahiko thought to himself.

"And how are you doing Himura-san? I had heard from my husband that you were declining in health."

"Oh I'm doing just fine. I have no complaints." Kenshin smiled happily and helped Kenji who was making a bit of a mess with his food. Yahiko looked down at his bowl of rice as he grabbed a chunk of fried tofu and ate it. Kenshin's declining health had been a concern of his for the last few years. Ever since Megumi had informed them that Kenshin had suffered from too many injuries and the stress of learning the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu succession technique and that his body was degenerating, Yahiko had felt bad. Kenshin was his hero after all. The man he looked up to and wanted to be most like. Did he still want to be like him? Did he only look up to him because of his superior sword skills? Why did he feel something that could only be pity for Kenshin? Never once in all the years after Kenshin had started failing in health had he ever complained of his lost abilities. Yahiko wondered if he himself was taking the whole thing worse than Kenshin was. _Not much to wonder there Kenshin doesn't seem to care at all._ That, of course, was just one more thing that made Yahiko admire him still. But he couldn't shake his feeling of pity. Aloud he still maintained that Kenshin was the greatest sword fighter in all of Japan, but inside Yahiko had started to wonder if he was better than Kenshin. For almost a year he'd been carrying around Kenshin's sakabatou, protecting the weak. His skills had increased phenomenally, a fact he was careful not to gloat about in front of others. _I finally really feel like I've gotten stronger. But, poor Kenshin._

Yahiko looked up from his bowl of rice as Kenshin was wiping some soup off of Kenji's chin. Feeling Yahiko's eyes on him Kenshin looked up and met his stare with a knowing smile.

Yahiko glanced down at his bowl of rice and started eating hurriedly. There was still something about Kenshin that spoke of the power that he possessed. And Yahiko knew that Kenshin could always tell what he was thinking. He'd never lost the ability to read people perfectly. It was uncanny sometimes. Especially when Yahiko caught himself thinking about how sorry he felt for Kenshin. Somehow he knew that Kenshin knew what he was thinking, and that bothered him. He didn't want Kenshin to know that he felt bad for him.

After Tokio and her son left the three of them sat around talking for a while about Yahiko and Kaoru's disbelief at her being Saitoh's wife. Kenshin himself admitted that he had been surprised to learn that Saitoh was married and even more surprised to have his wife walk into their dojo. "When Misao and I first learned about Saitoh being married we had wondered if she was a goddess or something. It seems we might have been correct. Tokio-dono seems like a wonderful person. It should be interesting to have Saitoh's son here training." Kenshin finished with a wistful smile.

"Eek, that's right. Tsuyoshi is going to be taking lessons here! This is just so weird." Yahiko shook his head ruefully.

After the dishes were cleaned Yahiko was sitting outside on the porch watching Kenji practice as Kaoru stood by him giving pointers. Yahiko absentmindedly fanned himself. _Summer will be here before we know it._ He thought to himself as he looked up at the clear blue sky. A hand softly reached down and rested on Yahiko's head.

"Yahiko, why don't you come with me to the dojo." Kenshin voice came from behind Yahiko.

"Sure Kenshin, but um.. why?"

"I was thinking that I could use a little exercise." Yahiko got to his feet. _Uh oh, he must have figured out what I was thinking earlier._ Yahiko picked up the sakabatou and slid it in his belt. He followed Kenshin over to the dojo and wasn't too surprised when Kaoru and Kenji followed them in to watch.

That evening Yahiko had almost decided not to go visit Tsubame. He could barely move, his body was so sore. As he lay awake that night he thought to himself happily. _Even without Hiten Mitsurugi, Kenshin can still kick a lot of ass. Or at least mine._ He tried to roll over on his side but it was just as uncomfortable as his back. It was a satisfying feeling. Kenshin didn't usually stoop so low as to put Yahiko in his place, but somehow Kenshin had figured out that Yahiko needed a little reminder that he wasn't some helpless old man or something. Perhaps it had even been to reassure himself? Yahiko couldn't tell for sure but the one thing he knew was that he had enjoyed the hour that the two of them had sparred.

"He's still so fast." Yahiko muttered to himself. He could talk to himself all he wanted after all. He was in his very own apartment. For the last few years, Yahiko had been living at Sanosuke's old place even though he spent the majority of his time at the dojo. Yahiko enjoyed the feeling of freedom though it was still nice to be able to go to the dojo whenever he wanted to. _It's been six years._ Yahiko closed his eyes. _For six years Kenshin and Kaoru have been there for me._ _We're like family._ Yahiko finally started drifting off to sleep, his clothes hanging from a line strung across the room swayed gently as a cool breeze trickled through. On the back of his shirt, a small design could be seen: "Aku", The character for evil. _Feels like someone is missing from our family though_

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Tokio is the coolest character mentioned in Rurouni Kenshin that we never got to meet. Of course, I had to have her in "Run to You". She plays a huge role, as you will discover! 

For those of you who haven't read the manga, Outa Higashidani is Sano's little brother. Go read the translations of the manga already! He's so cute!! *grin* (I guess you need pics to SEE how cute his is) So who has a guess as to how Outa is going to get along with Tsuyoshi? Read the next chapter to find out! (mini-Sano, mini-Saitoh... it's not hard to figure out) 


	3. Chapter 2: Showdown

Chapter 2: Showdown 

Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

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**Chapter 2: Showdown  
**

As the months went by and spring turned to summer Yahiko and the others started wondering if Sagara Sanosuke was really coming back to Japan or not. Yahiko found himself expecting to see the chicken head show up at the dojo every day he went to teach. After a while the feeling started to go away. You can only be on the edge of your seat for so long.

Along with losing some of his excitement for Sano's return, the initial surprise of meeting Saitoh's wife had worn off as well. Yahiko wondered if it was due in part to the fact that he had befriended the young Tsuyoshi. At times the ten year old displayed some decidedly Saitoh-ish personality traits. He could be very cold when he wanted to be. But overall, Yahiko had found him much easier to get along with and understand then his father, Saitoh. Naturally, Saitoh WAS a cold blooded-killer. Some things still didn't fit together, like how did Saitoh have a perfect, kind, beautiful, wife? But after a few months of Tokio visiting the dojo they all forgot about the confusion. Tokio's son seemed to be having so much fun training at the dojo that after the first week Tokio had brought another boy to train there. His name was Mishima Eiji and he was Tokio's foster son. Kenshin had greeted Eiji warmly and reminded Kaoru and Yahiko about the story of the young boy he had met all those years ago on his way to Kyoto. Eiji seemed well suited to studying the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu, and judging by his skills, Yahiko figured he had been training in the art of kenjutsu already. He jumped right into the advanced class and seemed to hit it off well with both Yutarou and Yahiko. Tsuyoshi had a lot of natural talent that needed to be nurtured. He was a studious pupil but one thing kept getting in the way of making him the ideal student. On more than one occasion he had had problems with one of the other students. Minor disagreements seemed to develop into something more between Tsuyoshi and the other student, Higashidani Outa. The seemingly good-natured young boys somehow brought out the worst in each other.

Yahiko walked into the entry courtyard one fine summer afternoon, and found Tsuyoshi and Outa glaring at each other with fists clenched. The other students from that session were standing around cheering them on. Yutarou stood watching with an amused look on his face. Outa wore his little white outfit with the character of evil sewn on the back and for the first time that Yahiko had ever seen, the young boy was wearing a red headband. The headband held up Outa's hair, which was sticking out all over the place. Yahiko almost laughed when he saw the mini-Sano. Talk about an interesting role model. He mused to himself and then remembered his own little character of evil. He smiled and then took a look at Tsuyoshi. The boy was wearing dark pants and shirt, looking more western style than traditional Japanese. In his left hand he held his shinai. Yahiko noticed that Outa was unarmed. If the two boys didn't have such serious looks on their faces Yahiko would have definitely broke out laughing. This mini showdown between little Sano and Saitoh wannabe's was almost too much for Yahiko to handle. He hurried over to Yutarou and asked him what was going on. As of yet the two boys were just staring at each other.

"Oh they got into another argument." Yutarou commented as he watched the two. "I think it's best if we let the two of them work through their disagreements themselves."

"Well if either of them gets hurt you're the one who's going to answer for it." Yahiko told Yutarou. Yutarou just shrugged.

"They're not going to hurt each other. They're just little kids."

"When WE were ten we could do serious damage to people." Yahiko commented with a grin at Yutarou. "Well, at least when 'I' was ten. You pretty much sucked when you were that age." Before Yutarou could make a snide comment Outa finally broke his and Tsuyoshi's silence.

"I do know what this word on my back means!"

"Prove it, ahou." Tsuyoshi said coldly.

"It means Aku!" Outa shouted out defiantly. Tsuyoshi snorted derisively.

"Yeah that's the word alright, but you seem to be a little confused about it's meaning. Why would you be wearing something that says you're evil and you're pretending that it's a good thing? Are you an idiot?"

"I'm not an idiot, stop calling me that!" Outa yelled again. His little fists were clenched by his sides. _Uh oh._ Yahiko thought to himself. _Here it goes._

"Idiot idiot idiot. You're a moron."

"Shut UP!"

"Make me, ahou!" With a roar Outa charged at Tsuyoshi. Yahiko blinked in surprise when Tsuyoshi slid into a stance that was frighteningly similar to Saitoh's gatotsu stance. His left hand pulled back with his shinai held horizontally while his right hand steadied the end of the bamboo sword. Outa ran straight at him and caught the shinai's tip in the middle of his chest. The boy went down with a thud while Tsuyoshi stood and rested the shinai over his shoulder.

"See, you're a moron." He said mockingly as Outa laid on the ground catching his breath. Outa slowly got to his feet, panting.

"Stop calling me that!!" He yelled once again and rushed at Tsuyoshi. Tsuyoshi got ready to deliver his imitation gatotsu to Outa a second time. But this time when he lunged Outa sidestepped and landed a vicious punch right to Tsuyoshi's face. The students in the audience all went "Owwww!" or "Ooooh!" in unison. Tsuyoshi hit the dirt. He got up after a moment and gingerly touched his cheek where Outa had connected. He glared at the other boy and rushed him with his little gatotsu. Outa hadn't expected a counter attack so soon and was once again victim to Tsuyoshi's shinai. He went down so hard that Yahiko was afraid he might have actually been hurt. He started to head over to Outa, but Yutarou put out a hand to stop him.

"Come on, let the kid take care of himself. He's such a little sissy that it's good to see him stand up for himself once in a while." Yahiko took a good look at Outa lying on the ground and realized that he wasn't injured. He stopped and stood beside Yutarou, once again the silent spectator. Outa pulled himself together and got to his feet. The kid might not have been injured but he had to be sore. It didn't seem to stop him as he rushed Tsuyoshi one more time. Right as Tsuyoshi gatotsued him the entry door opened and Kenshin, Kaoru, and Kenji came back with rice, tofu, and a variety of life's other necessities.

"What's going on here??" Kaoru yelled out in surprise. The other students quickly stepped back and let them through. Kaoru rushed over to Outa who was lying on the ground rubbing his chest. Tsuyoshi just stood there looking smug. Kenji followed his mother over to Outa. She asked him if he was all right and when he told her that he was ok she turned to Tsuyoshi and yelled at him. Yahiko watched with a smile as Kenji walked over to Tsuyoshi. Kenji took out his little shinai and smacked Tsuyoshi with it. "Bad!" Kenji yelled at Tsuyoshi. _Little Saitoh beats little Sano, little Kenshin beats little Saitoh._ Yahiko thought to himself as he watched the next generation of warriors fight the same battles of the last.

~//~

That night, somewhere off the coast of Japan, a large steamer silently made its way through a growing fog. A man stood leaning at the railing. He stared out at the sea, his look thoughtful, his mind miles and years away. A ragged cloak was wrapped around his neck and draped over his body in a typical desert traveler fashion. Long unruly hair flew back from his face in the wind. The man smiled and absently rubbed his unshaved jaw. The rushing air almost gave him the feeling of flight, and once again he enjoyed the sensation. He was tempted to climb up on the railing and get the full effect, but the last time he'd done that he'd almost slipped on the slick railing and plunged headlong into the ocean. He grinned remembering the episode. Somewhere behind him the sound of footsteps could be heard coming in his direction. He turned around looking for a hiding spot and quickly ducked behind a lifeboat, not wanting to get spotted. Crews of ocean faring ships usually didn't like finding stowaways onboard. _If you're not going to pay for transportation it's much better not to get caught. Rule one of inexpensive world travel._ He thought to himself, a cocky grin plastered onto his face.

The footsteps came closer. It sounded like one person walking, and they seemed to be taking their time. Maybe they had seen him and sent someone to check it out. It was always a possibility that he'd get caught when he stowed away on board ocean faring ships. He usually didn't worry about it, in fact it made the long trips that much more interesting. He always found somewhere to spend his time sleeping, and he always brought enough food to feed himself on the voyage. On occasion he'd bribe crewmembers to keep him hidden or supply him with food. It worked well enough. His silent musings were interrupted when the sound of someone running toward him could be heard. Had they spotted him? No, the running person seemed to be heading for the other person who had been slowly walking along the deck. The man listened intently and held his breath to make sure he was absolutely quiet. The voice of the first man called out.

"What's going on?" The running person continued until it seemed that the two of them were on top of each other. The hidden man listened in shock as he heard the sound of a blade being drawn, a cry of surprised agony, and then the wet thud of a human body hitting a hard surface. The weapon was sheathed with a click, and a dragging noise ensued. A moment later there was a splash and the sound of a single set of hurrying footsteps heading in the direction they'd came from. The longhaired man paused a moment and then moved to get a view of the deck where the event had taken place. There were blood smears all the way to the railing of the ship. The man swore softly to himself and was about to go take a better look when the sound of multiple running steps could be heard headed in his direction. He quickly dove back to his hiding spot and waited.

"I'm not sure what's going on but the captain is missing too!" One of the running voices said. Suddenly the running stopped and some cries of surprise and shock could be heard. "It's blood!" Someone exclaimed.

"There will be more of it soon." A sinister voice spoke from back the way they had came. The hidden man listened intently as the sound of footsteps could be heard stepping out quietly from somewhere nearby. The group that had discovered the blood cried out in surprise, "Who are you!? What do you want!?"

"This ship will be ours. Now die!" The sound of multiple weapons being drawn from sheaths filled the air. Cries of panic and fear followed immediately.

"Stop right there!" His voice cut through the foggy sea air. The tone was sharp and left little in the way of argument. The command was one that carried with it the air of someone who expected to be listened to. The man stepped out from behind the lifeboat, eyes glaring and face deadly serious. The wind whipped his cloak, hair, and headband menacingly. On the deck were two groups, one group was five members of the ship's crew and the other group was three men wearing black cloaks and carrying swords.

The men with swords looked confused for a minute and their leader yelled out, "Who are you?"

"If you're going to kill these men, I'm you're worst nightmare." The words carried with it an air of absolute confidence. Without another word the three, armed men rushed at the brave unarmed man. He easily dodged each of their attacks and in mere seconds the three of them were lying on the ground with a variety of broken and dislocated body parts. The five crewmembers watched in awe and were quick to rush up to their savior and thank him for saving their lives.

"What's going on?" The man asked the crew.

"We're not sure except that a bunch of people have come up missing. There must be more people trying to take over the ship! What should we do?" The crewmen asked in fear.

"Go find somewhere to hide, I'll go find your assassins and take care of them." The man said with a cocky smile.

"Who are you?" The crewmen asked in amazement.

"I'm just your average stowaway." He gave them a reassuring smile. "Now go hide while I clean up this mess." He turned and without another word ran off in search of more sword wielding hijackers. The five crewmen watched in amazement as he ran off fearlessly. Sewn on the back of his cloak one word could be seen, "Aku", the character for evil.

------------------------

So yeah, Outa and Tsuyoshi don't seem to get along very well. How adorable. :) 

'Just your average stowaway'... haha, I think not! Guess who's going to be back in Japan FINALLY! Whoohoo! What's the reunion going to be like I wonder? Read on!! You know you want to know!


	4. Chapter 3: Reunion

Chapter 3: Reunion 

Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

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**Chapter 3: Reunion**

When the ship pulled into the Tokyo Harbor the next day, many relieved passengers and crewmembers disembarked and told their friends and loved ones waiting for them there in Tokyo about the terrible thing that had happened the night before. Apparently a group of armed men had attempted to hijack the ship and had killed 4 of the crewmembers, including the captain. A lone man had stepped out from the shadows and single-handedly beaten a group of almost thirty hijackers. No one had seen this happen but they had found the thirty hijackers unconscious and heaped in a pile in one of the cargo holds. A few of the crewmembers swore that they had seen the man who saved the ship, but search as they might, no one found the mysterious hero.

~//~

At the dojo, Kaoru stood watching Kenji practice. The warm summer sun was beating down from a clear blue sky. "Aren't you getting hot Kenji?" The little boy shook his head and kept swinging. "I'm going to go see if your father has lunch ready yet. You keep practicing, I'll be right back." Kenji was a good boy and stayed right where Kaoru left him, happily swinging his little shinai. At the back gate a tall, bearded, longhaired man with a sack over his shoulder quietly pushed open the swinging gate and let himself in. The good old dojo was just as he remembered. Well, maybe not just as he remembered. The air was filled with the sound of people practicing in the dojo and in the backyard where he stood a small figure was practicing with a tiny bamboo sword.

There was something oddly familiar about the small figure. The tall man walked right up to Kenji and squatted down to get a good look at him, setting his sack on the ground. Kenji seemed to ignore him completely and kept swinging his shinai. The man stood and walked around the young boy, getting a look at him from all angles. He finally reached down and picked the boy up by the back of his shirt so he could look him right in the face. Kenji stopped swinging his shinai and hung there in the air, looking into the face of a man he had never met in his life. No fear crossed Kenji's face, just a blank expression and a couple of confused blinks.

"Oi Kenshin, you sure are a lot shorter than I remember." Kenji didn't say anything but continued looking at the grinning stranger. His little shinai was still clutched in his hand and he quickly brought it up and smacked the man right in the face. The stranger grunted "ouch" in surprise and put a hand to his face to protect it from further blows. Kenji started to swing again right as a familiar voice called out.

"Kenji, lunch is ready!" Kaoru stepped onto the back porch. A moment of fear jumped inside her as she saw her young son being held in the air by a dirty, longhaired, bearded man wearing a tattered cloak that was spotted with bloodstains. She couldn't see his face clearly because he had his hand covering it protectively from her son's furious blows. Kaoru did the only thing she could think of doing and quickly whipped off one of her wooden sandals and threw it at the stranger with all her might and maternal instincts. "Let my son go!" The shoe connected solidly on the side of the man's forehead. Apparently he hadn't expected to get hit by a projectile right in that tender spot and he involuntarily took an unbalanced step backwards. He tripped into the laundry bucket with an exclamation of surprise and a loud crash as the washtub shattered and sent water spraying everywhere. Somehow in the process of falling over he had retained his grip of Kenji and held him at arms reach, safe and sound.

Something clicked in Kaoru's mind as she saw him crash to the ground. Maybe it was the surprised exclamation or the way he flailed as he fell back. Or perhaps it was the red headband blowing freely as the wind rushed against him. Maybe she had gotten a look at his face as he fell and protectively used both his hands to hold her son instead of trying to catch himself. Whatever the reason, Kaoru was running as fast as she could with only one sandal toward them.

"SANOSUKE!??" She ran up and stopped over them, looking down into the face of her long absent friend. He looked a little winded for a moment and then his typical grin spread over his now rugged features, bringing back a rush of memories for Kaoru.

"Oi Jochan, is this yours?" He held Kenji toward his mother. Kenji reached out longingly for the safety of his mother's arms. Kaoru absently took Kenji from Sanosuke's outstretched hands, her focus more on the man lying on the ground.

"It really is you! I can't believe it! Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry for attacking you, I didn't recognize you and thought you were trying to hurt Kenji!" Kaoru's talking was frantic and excited but she did find time to help Sanosuke get back to his feet. He accepted the assistance and stood, quickly taking off the tattered, and now soaked, cloak. "You're really finally back!" She said happily as she grabbed Sano in a friendly one-armed hug. (Kenji was being supported in her other arm and he got squished between the two of them)

"It's good to be back." Sano patted the excited woman on the back hoping that it would help to calm her down. After years of traveling the world he wasn't quite used to the attention he was getting from his old friend. "Now, did I just hear you say something about lunch, cause I'm starving." Before Kaoru could reply Kenshin had stepped outside to see what all the commotion was about. Upon seeing Sanosuke a broad smile played across his lips. Sano stopped patting Kaoru on the back and looked over as Kenshin walked toward him. Kaoru let Sano go and stepped aside. The two men stood for a moment grinning at each other. Sano saw that Kenshin had cut his hair short. To his surprise he also noted that the cross-shaped scar on Kenshin's left cheek was fading away. Kenshin looked healthy so Sano figured that his degeneration hadn't been as bad as Megumi had made them believe it was going to be.

"Kenshin." Said with a grin, the word carried all the friendship and respect Sanosuke had for his friend.

"Sano." It was friendly recognition and so much more. Kenshin smiled proudly and Sano knew that he was doing his own appraisal of his long absent friend. Kenshin noticed that Sano appeared to be in good health though he was quite dirty and a little thinner than he remembered him being. Sano's youthful appearance had all but disappeared leaving a rugged and older looking man. His hair looked like it hadn't been cut in a long time and the facial hair was a new look to get used to. His skin was darkened from massive amounts of exposure to the sun. The two looked each other over for another moment and then they both reached out their hands clasping the other's forearm in a brotherly grip. Both felt the strength of the other, and Sano happily realized that Kenshin's grip was still as firm as ever. Kenshin, on the other hand, noticed a new change in his friend's grip. It was confident and sure as ever but the roughness of his hand instantly told Kenshin that Sanosuke had picked up a few calluses doing some kind of manual labor.

After a moment, Sano's grin broadened and he pulled Kenshin into a gigantic bear hug, lifting him off his feet. He started laughing, spun him around once, and then grabbed Kaoru and Kenji into the embrace. The three of them laughed and said all sorts of happy things like, "It's great to see you guys! We missed you a lot! So glad to have you back!" Kenji just enjoyed the ride. Finally, Sano squeezed them happily and yelled out with all his considerable lungpower, "I'M BACK!"

"Ack, Sano, you're squishing Kenji!" Kaoru said after another moment of enduring Sanosuke's happiness. Sano released his death grip on the Himura family and set them back on the ground. The grin was still plastered on his face and the faces of Kenshin and Kaoru.

"So yeah, I haven't been properly introduced to this little guy." Sano said crouching down to look Kenji in the face once again. Kenshin put a fatherly hand on the young boy's head and proudly said, "This is my son, Kenji. Kenji, this is Sagara Sanosuke, our really good friend we told you stories about." Kenji looked shyly at Sano.   
  
"Hi Kenji." Sano spoke quietly to the little boy, smiling and giving him a little wave with his fingers. A tiny smile came to Kenji's lips but then he buried his face in his mother's kimono. Kenshin and Kaoru laughed.

"He can be a little shy around strangers, I mean, people he hasn't met before." Kaoru corrected herself, not wanting to alienate Sano. Sano chuckled to himself. "Say 'hi' to Sanosuke, Kenji." Kaoru whispered into her son's ear.

"No, it's alright, I am a stranger to this little guy."

"You're certainly stranger than most!" Kenshin said good-naturedly. "But you'll never be a stranger to the Kamiya Kasshin Dojo. And Kenji will get used to you in no time."

From behind Sano a vaguely familiar voice called out. "I thought I heard you yelling." The voice itself wasn't that familiar but the tone was. Sano stood and turned to look. A young man wearing a white and blue practice uniform with a sword slung at his side stood with a wide grin on his face. Familiar dark spiky hair shot out in all directions, but the young boy that Sano had known was gone. In his place stood an impressive young swordsman who had an air of maturity and strength. Time and hormones had deepened Yahiko's voice and his little body had matured. For a moment Sano realized that he had fully expected to find Yahiko just as he remembered seeing him the night he had fled the country. His surprise must have shown because Yahiko's grin got even wider.

"Have I changed that much?" Sano quickly overcame his initial surprise and was quick to retort.  
  
"Not at all Yahiko-chan!" Everyone broke out laughing, including Yahiko. Apparently the affectionate suffix no longer bothered the young man. After all, there was no way Yahiko could possibly be considered little anymore. In the last few months he had almost grown taller than Kenshin. As they laughed Yahiko sprinted over to where Sano was standing. He moved in fast and tackled Sanosuke, who had only a moment to brace himself for the attack. The two fiercely embraced for a moment before Sano used his foot to try and trip Yahiko to the ground. A brief wrestling match ensued, and it was quite a different scene than any of their previous matches. Yahiko had grown and matured in the 5 years since Sano had last seen him. He wasn't quite the pushover that Sano remembered, to say the least. Finally, Yahiko tore himself free and the two stood grinning at each other for a moment. Kaoru and Kenshin watched happily as the two were reunited. Yahiko ran a hand back through his hair in an attempt to straighten it out.

"Chikusho Sano, you smell like dead fish." Kenshin and Kaoru burst out laughing once again. Sano looked surprised for a minute and then took a sniff in the general direction of his underarm and recoiled.

"You really do smell like dead fish." Kenshin said with a smile.

"Well, I have been on a boat for the past few weeks! Give me a break!"

"Even falling into the soapy laundry bucket you still didn't manage to improve your odor. We'll get a bath ready for you and get you cleaned up." Kaoru said.

"Mmmm.. yeah that'll be great. But first, I'm staved! Let's eat!"

"Oh that's right, I just finished preparing lunch!" Kenshin replied. "Well let's go inside and get Sano something to eat."

"Maybe we should just bring him out the food. You let him inside and the place is going to smell like dead fish for a week!" Sano took a playful swing at Yahiko, Yahiko ducked out of the way with a laugh.

"Why don't we all eat outside, it's too nice to spend the day indoors." Kaoru commented happily as they all walked toward the house.

"Alright, that sounds good." Kenshin replied.

"You guys can wait out here while I go get the food." Kaoru headed inside with Kenji while Yahiko, Sanosuke, and Kenshin took a seat on the porch.

"Kuso, Yahiko, you sure have grown up." Sano said as he sprawled out comfortably in his old spot. "How'd you get so big eating Jochan's cooking?" From inside an angry voice called out, "I heard that Sano!" The guys laughed. Kaoru and Kenji came back out to the porch, both of them carrying a tray heaped with food. In front of Sano, Kaoru set down a big bowl of white rice and miso soup. Later Sano realized it was the best food he'd eaten in a long time. (The story might have been a little different had it been Kaoru's cooking though.)

While they ate they exchanged stories and worked to inform Sano of everything major that had happened while he had been running around the world; the wedding, the birth of Kenji, Yahiko's passage to manhood, etc. Sano gave them a little summary of his adventures and promised that he'd give them detailed stories later.

"I'm full of stories now, so you don't want to get me started unless you have the rest of the day to sit here and listen. And right now I can think of a million other things to do then listen to myself talk."

"I can only think of one." Yahiko commented, a sneaky grin creeping onto his face. "Go throw you in the bathhouse and lock you in until you don't stink anymore!" He laughed and waved a hand in front of his nose trying to get the smell of dead fish from his nostrils.

"Then why don't you go make yourself useful and get the bath heated!" Sano growled.

"Ha ha, if it will get that smell out of here I'll do whatever it takes." Yahiko jumped to his feet and ran off to warm the bath. The others watched him go. Sano shook his head in amazement.

"He really has grown up hasn't he? I'm kinda sorry I missed it."

"Oh you didn't miss much." Kaoru replied with a smile. "He went though a phase where he was completely unbearable. I couldn't get him to do anything!"   
Kenshin grinned and commented, "Yes, he really picked up a lot of a 'certain person's' character traits over the years."

"Well that's good to hear." Sano replied with a laugh. "I'd hate to think no one was carrying on my job." The three of them laughed while the sounds of happy young voices filled the air.

"Practice must be getting out." Kaoru commented. "Oh my gosh, that reminds me! Come on Sano." She said and jumped to her feet grabbing Sano by the arm and pulling him along.

"What's up Jochan?"

"You'll see!"

They ran around to the dojo and found a small crowd of children and teen-agers gathering around two boys. It seemed that practice hadn't finished for the two of them who still had their shinai's in hand. They'd taken time to change out of their practice clothes but had apparently jumped right back into some disagreement or another they must have had during practice. Sano stopped dead in his tracks as he caught sight of a young boy wearing the character for evil on his back and a red headband. Though the young boy had aged some he was still easily recognizable. Kaoru kept running and called out, "Cut it out you two!" Sano grabbed Kaoru and pulled her to a stop.

"No wait, I want to see him fight." Sano said quietly to Kaoru. There was something in his eyes that Kaoru had never seen before. His gaze was riveted to the young boy with "Aku" on his back as he and the other boy clashed shinai's repeatedly.

"They're both pretty good." He commented as he watched. "A lot better than I thought he'd be"

At last Fujita Tsuyoshi delivered a blow to Higashidani Outa that sent him reeling and he collapsed to the ground. Tsuyoshi walked over to Outa and stood gloating over him.

"Ahou I win again." He was about to give Outa a good kick to keep him from getting up, when he was lifted into the air from behind. Tsuyoshi looked down at Outa in surprise while he saw the same look returned in the beaten boy's face.

"You beat him, that's good enough. You need to learn how to be a better winner or you'll end up being the loser in the end." Tsuyoshi looked in surprise behind him to find a large, longhaired, bearded, smelly man holding him in the air. Sano took and casually tossed Tsuyoshi over the heads of some of the other students and into a bush. Kaoru's frantic, "Ack Sano don't!" was completely useless. Sano smiled down at Outa.

"So you took my advice and got stronger, eh round cheeks?" Outa just stared in awe and admiration. Sano reached out one of his hands to the boy. Outa was speechless. He took Sano's offered hand and was instantly pulled to his feet. A moment passed where Sano grinned down on Outa and Outa grinned up at Sano.

"It's you!" Outa finally managed to say. "You're my my big brother!" Sano's smile dropped.

"Who told you that?" He sounded surprised.

"Kaoru-dono and I figured it out." Sano took a look back at Kaoru who just shrugged.

"He told us his story and we put two and two together. It wasn't very hard to figure out Sanosuke." Outa had taken a tentative step closer to Sano and gave his pants a little tug to get his attention. Sano turned back to look at his young brother that he'd only met for a few days and had never really had anything to do with. A look of concentration was on Sano's face and it was easily mistaken for anger or disappointment. Outa's excitement died and the smile left his young face. He looked down at the ground and stammered.

"Um... I I think you're really great. And I... um I wanted to be like you because you were so brave." Sano's look softened as Outa continued speaking and staring at the ground. "You're the hero of the whole town, you know. Since nobody knew your name they call you Yama Arashi." (Mountain Storm)

"Yama Arashi?" Sano asked quietly. Outa looked up and saw that Sano didn't look angry anymore. His courage returned gradually as he continued speaking.

"Yeah Yama Arashi. It's because of all the noise you made when you defeated Fudosawa's two hundred men. Everyone thought it was a storm or a rumbling in the mountain. You're a legend now. And I was I was really happy to find out that you had friends here in Tokyo. And when they told me about you, I remembered stories Uki told me about the big brother I never met. Instructor Kaoru said that she thought you were the same person, so I asked father and he told me and Uki the truth. I was so happy, and you should have seen Uki. She wanted to find you right away but you had already left Japan. She almost jumped on a boat and went looking for you. But she was engaged and so she didn't."

As Outa talked some of the students stood around listening, and others said goodbye to Kaoru and Yutarou and left. Tsuyoshi pulled himself free from the bush and had busied himself removing twigs, leaves, and dirt from his clothing and hair. He had a few scratches and bruises but was otherwise uninjured from his flight. He watched Sanosuke and Outa as the two talked. A look of determination was set on his face. After a moment, he walked up behind Sanosuke and nailed him with his shinai right in the back of his left knee. Sanosuke swore and regained his balance. He turned angrily to find Tsuyoshi standing there defiantly with his shinai firmly gripped in both hands.

"You think you're pretty tough or something picking on a little kid?" Sano's eyes narrowed. "I'm not afraid of you. You try and fight me face to face!" Sano almost laughed but Tsuyoshi came at him intending to nail him again. Sano caught the bamboo sword in one hand and picked up Tsuyoshi with the other.

"Sano don't!" Kaoru was running toward the two of them. Sano ignored her and tossed Tsuyoshi back into the bushes.

"Man that kid's annoying. Who the heck does he think he is?" Sano had turned back and aimed his comment at Outa with a cocky grin, but Kaoru was the one to reply.

"That's Fujita Tsuyoshi!" Sano gave a quick 'who cares' kind of shrug. Kaoru reached Tsuyoshi and pulled him out of the bushes helping him get the twigs out of his hair and clothes.

"If my father was here he'd teach you a lesson!" Tsuyoshi yelled at Sanosuke. Sanosuke didn't look impressed.

"Oh yeah kid, I'm real scared now." Sano commented dryly. Kaoru looked absolutely exasperated.

"Sano, Tsuyoshi's father is Saitoh Hajime!"

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Sano's back! Horray! And now he's throwing Saitoh's kid into a bush... *sigh* What happens when Sano meets Saitoh's wife? How do Outa and Sano treat each other? Read the next chapter!


	5. Chapter 4: Tale of the Missing Rice Bal...

Chapter 4: Tale of the Missing Rice Balls 

Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

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**Chapter 4: Tale of the Missing Rice Balls**

Sagara Sanosuke was still swearing, ranting, and raving five minutes later when Fujita Tokio arrived to pick up her son. Tsuyoshi seemed to be quite amused by Sanosuke's reaction. He was getting used to seeing how Himura Kenshin's friends and companions reacted when they found out who his father was. There was something particularly satisfying about the large man's reaction. Tsuyoshi found it even more amusing when his mother finally showed up. Sanosuke took one look at Tokio, turned around slowly, and then ran off behind the dojo.

"What a strange man." Tokio commented to Kaoru as they watched Sano run for cover.

"Well you have to understand that he and your husband have had some interesting encounters."

"Oh? That wouldn't happen to be Sagara Sanosuke would it?" Tokio asked, turning to Kaoru with a smile that seemed to say, 'I already know the answer'.

"Why yes it is. Sano just got back today from wherever the heck he's been for the past five years. It might take him a few days to get readjusted."

"Well, when he does get used to the idea of me being Saitoh Hajime's wife I think I'd like to talk to him and get to know him. You are all such wonderful people and I've heard some interesting things about Sagara Sanosuke." Kaoru raised her eyebrows. She could only IMAGINE what types of interesting things Saitoh would have told her about Sanosuke. Tsuyoshi interrupted their conversation by drawing attention to a variety of scrapes and bruises he had on his face and arms.

"Well, look what that rooster-head did to me. He threw me into that bush over there TWICE!" Tokio looked concerned and put a hand to her son's face, inspecting the cuts and bruises. Tokio glanced at Kaoru for confirmation of her son's tale. Kaoru sighed and nodded her head.

"Yes, Sano threw him into the bushes twice. I tried to stop him but Sano can be a bit stupid and stubborn sometimes."

"I'm assuming he had some reason for his actions?" Tokio was dumbfounded.

"Well your son was in another fight with Higashidani Outa who just happens to be Sanosuke's little brother. I think he was just trying to protect him." Kaoru turned to glance at Outa who was still standing where Sano had pulled him to his feet. He looked a little embarrassed and lowered his head as Kaoru spoke to Tokio.

"I see" Tokio rested a hand on Tsuyoshi's shoulder. "Tsuyoshi, go apologize to Outa-kun." Tsuyoshi knew better than to argue with his mother and he marched right over to him.

"I'm sorry for getting in another fight with you." Tsuyoshi mumbled. Outa shook his head.

"No, it was my fault. I shouldn't get so worked up when you tease me. I know I'm not very good at kendo and I do screw up sometimes. And I'm really sorry about you getting thrown into the bushes. I didn't ask him to do that or anything." Tsuyoshi gave him a little smile.

"It's ok, I know it wasn't your fault. Well um, I guess I'll see you tomorrow at practice." Outa grinned and nodded. Tsuyoshi continued with an evil smirk. "I'm looking forward to making fun of you again." The two boys both smiled at each other and then clicked into competition mode.

"And I'm looking forward to kicking your butt!" Outa threw back at him.

"That'll be the day, moron!" If Tokio hadn't been standing right there Tsuyoshi and Outa probably would have resumed their fight. Fortunately she was quick to intercede and dragged Tsuyoshi away, giving a polite farewell to Kaoru as she left.

"Well Outa, don't you think you've caused enough trouble for one day?" Kaoru came up beside Outa and rested a friendly hand on his shoulder. "Why don't you go wash your hands and then head to the kitchen? We have some rice balls saved just for you." Outa smiled up happily at Kaoru.

"Thanks Kaoru-dono." He started to run off to find the food but he stopped a few feet away and turned back to Kaoru with a questioning look. "Um, Kaoru-dono?"

"Yes Outa?"

"Do you think" he faltered a moment and then continued. "Do you think Sanosuke was happy to see me?" There was uncertainty in the boy's voice and face. Kaoru gave him a confident smile and nodded.

"You bet!" A radiant smile spread itself over Outa's face as he turned and ran off happily. Kaoru watched him go and thought to herself how cute he looked with the little "Aku" on his back. During the summer he was living there at the dojo because he had nowhere else to stay while he took lessons. It was nice having someone using one of the extra bedrooms again. Ever since she and Kenshin had gotten married they shared the same bedroom, of course. And Yahiko had moved out into Sanosuke's old place. This left a lot of spare room and no one to use it properly. So when Outa told her and Kenshin that he had no place to stay for the summer they had been quick to offer him a room and food. After all, he was Sano's little brother, which made him an honorary member of the 'dojo family'.

Of course, there was more to it than that. Outa had quickly wormed his way into Kaoru's heart and as a young mother she had quickly taken Outa in under her wing. Yahiko had taken on a big brother role, and Kenshin offered the boy all sorts of fatherly advice. _It's amazing how the Kamiya Kasshin Dojo melds every person under its roof into one big happy family. Kaoru thought to herself. And now that Sanosuke is back everything finally feels complete._

"Kaoru-dono? Where did you say the rice balls are?" Outa came around the side of the dojo.

"They're in the kitchen, where else would they be?"

"I looked in the kitchen, there's no rice balls anywhere."

"Hmmm.. that's odd." Kaoru thought out loud as she headed to the kitchen to find the missing rice balls. She found Kenshin and Kenji washing some laundry. Kenji kept splashing the water at Kenshin and Kenshin kept saying in his sweet innocent way, "You shouldn't splash the water, that you should not." Kaoru called over to Kenshin.

"Do you know what I did with those rice balls for Outa?"

"They're in the kitchen I believe." Outa stepped out of the house.

"I just looked in the kitchen again. They're not there." Yahiko was coming around the side of the building and Kaoru called over to him.

"Yahiko, do you know what happened to the rice balls? They were for Outa's lunch." Yahiko just shrugged and said, "No clue." Kaoru put a finger to her lip in puzzlement as she tried to figure out where they could have disappeared to.

"Maybe Sano knows." Yahiko commented as he walked past Kaoru on the way to the dojo.

"Where'd he disappear to?" Kaoru asked glancing around.

"He just went in the bath house to get himself cleaned up finally."

"Come on Outa, we'll go ask Sanosuke if he knows what happened to them." Kaoru and Outa walked off to the bathhouse. As they approached they could hear Sano humming and singing to himself and the sound of water splashing around. Kaoru stepped over by the vent and called inside.

"Hey Sano, do you know what happened to the rice balls that were in the kitchen?" There was a slight pause and then Sanosuke replied.

"Nope, sorry Jochan." Kaoru turned to Outa and shrugged.

"Well, we can go check the kitchen again Outa. Come on."

Inside the bathhouse Sanosuke sat enjoying himself in the warm soothing bath. He paused a moment listening for Kaoru to ask him anything else. When it seemed she was gone Sanosuke happily reached into a tray half full of rice balls. He popped a whole one in his mouth and hummed as he chewed. A flashback to Tsuyoshi flying into the bushes popped into his mind. He shook his head sadly and thought to himself, _I can't believe I threw Saitoh's kid into a bush. And there's no way that beautiful woman is his wife. Oh wellno sense worrying about it now._ He shrugged and swallowed the rice ball. Then he sighed contentedly and sunk under the water to clean his face and hair. He stayed under holding his breath for as long as he could and then he lunged out of the water with a big gasping breath, sending a huge wave splashing all over the floor of the bathhouse. He gave a triumphant laugh and then leaned over to grab another rice ball. To his disappointment he found they were all soaked. He paused a moment looking at them forlornly. Then he shrugged, grabbed one, and was just about to pop it into his mouth when the door to the bathhouse flew open.

"I thought so!" Kaoru's voice was hard as steel as she stood in the doorway pointing her bokken at Sanosuke angrily. The rice ball had made it halfway to Sano's open mouth but it stopped right there. Sano's mouth snapped shut in guilt but then a sloppy grin burst onto his face.

"Can't a guy get a little privacy?" Kaoru looked like she was about ready to scream. She marched right over to Sano and nailed him on the head with her wooden sword.

"Pests don't need privacy! They need extermination!" She reached down and picked up the remaining rice balls only to find that they were all sopping wet. It was then that she noticed the floor was also covered in water.

Kenshin and Kenji were finishing up Sano's laundry when they heard the screaming and the sound of a bokken hitting someone in the head repeatedly. "And that's why you don't mess with mommy." Kenshin whispered to Kenji.

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Short, sweet, and hopefully entertaining. (at least a little, right??) Next chapter, Sano makes a predictable suggestion. Yup, it's time for a party at the Akabeko!! *cue happy eating music* Guess who can hold his sake? (and I'm not talking about Sano, that's just a given!) 


	6. Chapter 5: Akabeko Celebration

Untitled Document 

Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

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**Chapter 5: Akabeko Celebration**

It took Sano somewhere around an hour to mop up the floor of the bathhouse to Kaoru's satisfaction. She stood over him like a taskmaster watching the entire process with her bokken in hand. Outa got the biggest kick out of watching Kaoru boss Sanosuke around. Sanosuke grumbled the entire time.

"There, I'm finished."

"Nope, you missed a spot." Kaoru indicated a portion of the floor with her bokken. Sano sighed and crawled over with his rag. Outa giggled. Sano glared at him for the hundredth time.

"You wanna stop giggling sometime this year?" His voice was absolutely serious and carried with it a deadly tone, but somehow it just made the situation that much more amusing for Outa. He laughed again. Sano growled, clenched his teeth, and scrubbed the wet spot so hard the rag started to fall apart.

"Alright you're finished. Now I want you to apologize to Outa for eating his lunch." Sano stood, cracked his back, cracked his neck, and then glared at Outa for a moment. He looked positively menacing. He worked his jaw for a while, opened his mouth to say something, but then shut it.

"Well??" Kaoru was getting impatient. "Go ahead, tell him how sorry you are for eating and ruining his lunch."

"What if I'm not sorry?" Sanosuke looked at Kaoru defiantly. Yahiko was meditating in the dojo when he heard Sanosuke's cry of pain. He opened his eyes for a moment, shook his head, and resumed his meditation.

A little while later, Kaoru had resumed happy dojo life and was chatting cheerily with Kenshin and Kenji. Yahiko walked back onto the porch and dropped down beside them.

"Where'd Sano and Outa disappear to?" He asked curiously. Kaoru's eyes widened as she realized that she hadn't seen or heard either of them since she had triumphantly walked out of the bathhouse after forcing Sanosuke to apologize.

"Oh no, we better find them!" She jumped to her feet and ran off with Yahiko close behind. Kenshin just smiled and sighed. Yahiko and Kaoru didn't have to look too hard to find Sanosuke. He was just wandering around with a smile on his face and his hands in his pockets. He was wearing nothing but his pants and his headband. All his other usual wrappings were gone.

"It's a nice peaceful QUIET day isn't it?" He asked as they ran up to him. He was standing in front of a few of the trees and shrubs surrounding the dojo. Kaoru and Yahiko looked at each other, a common thought was exchanged, and they both walked back into the greenery. Sano stood watching them with a grin on his face.

Once they knew where to look, it didn't take any time to find Outa. He was tied to a tree with Sanosuke's waist wrapping and he was gagged with Sano's red arm bandage. He was trying to scream but the gag job was too efficient. He was squirming but it was obvious that he couldn't get free. They could hear Sano laughing as they untied Outa. The minute Outa was free of his bondage he ran off toward Sanosuke, an angry look on his young face. Outa charged him and nailed Sano's leg with a hard right. Sano just stood there with a stupid grin on his face while Outa proceeded to beat and pummel his leg with all his might.

"Try crawling up and biting him on the head! That works!" Yahiko called out encouragingly to Outa as he and Kaoru stood watching the two brothers. Sano met Yahiko's gaze with a slightly wistful expression. Outa immediately tried to find something to hold onto to pull himself up within biting distance of Sano's head. Apparently Sano's old jacket was a necessary component to Yahiko's former ability to climb up Sanosuke. Or maybe Yahiko was just more talented than Outa. Either way, Outa had absolutely no success in scaling his tall brother. Sano just laughed at his pathetic attempts. After a few minutes Yahiko couldn't take it anymore and charged in to give Outa a hand. It was all down hill from there.

Sano saw Yahiko come running in and he immediately picked up Outa and threw him in Yahiko's general direction. Yahiko gasped and braced himself to catch the airborne boy. He caught him and managed to keep his balance in the process. Yahiko then set Outa on his feet and the two of them advanced menacingly toward Sanosuke. Sano watched them for a moment with a cocky look on his face and then he turned tail and ran.

"After him!" Yahiko shouted as he and Outa took off running. Sanosuke careened around a corner and ran smack into Kenshin and the two slammed into the ground. Kenshin lay there with swirley eyes saying "Oroooooo" while Sano disentangled himself and ran off with a quick "Sorry Kenshin!" Yahiko and Outa ran around the corner and trampled over the former Hitokiri of the Ishin Shishi with barely an "oops, sorry Kenshin." Kaoru raced toward her fallen husband to see if he was all right and when his eyes snapped into normal focus she rolled up her sleeves and started chasing after Yahiko, Outa, and Sanosuke. Kenshin hopped to his feet and chased after his wife, trying to save the others from bodily harm. Meanwhile, Kenji stood on the porch clapping his hands as each one of the others ran past. Each time Kaoru ran by he yelled out in his little voice, "You're winning mommy!"

After a while everyone collapsed to the ground panting and laughing. Sano jumped to his feet first and rubbed his stomach.

"Che, now I'm hungry."

"You're ALWAYS hungry!" Kaoru and Yahiko yelled at him playfully.

"Well, I guess now's a good time to head to the Akabeko to celebrate my return!" He said happily. "My treat!" Kenshin, Kaoru, and Yahiko's eyes went wide.

"Nani?? You're taking US out to dinner?" Kaoru asked in astonishment.

"Who are you and what did you do to Sanosuke?" Yahiko said with a grin.

"Ha ha.. Well, we'd better hurry before I change my mind." He winked at them. Kaoru, Kenshin, Yahiko, and Outa all jumped to their feet. Sanosuke just took long enough to wrap his waist and his wrist before they headed out to the Akabeko.

"Hey Sano, what happened to your shirt anyways?" Yahiko asked the shirtless man. Sano gave Yahiko a look that seemed to say, "you have to ask?"

"Um well I have been GONE for five years. You think that shirt would stay together for five years of world traveling? Or more specifically, five years of ME traveling the world?" He indicated himself proudly with his thumb.   
"Oh yeah, good point."

"Yeah, it held together for a few good years but it sort of fell apart after a while. I kept the character for evil and had it sewn onto my cloak. Speaking of which." He gave Yahiko a shove so that Yahiko was in front of him instead of beside him. "I thought so!" On Yahiko's back Sanosuke saw a small "Aku". Yahiko was about to yell at him after he got pushed and then he realized that Sano was looking at his tribute to him.

"Yeah, I decided to shoulder "Aku" for a bit." Yahiko echoed the last thing that Sanosuke had said to him before heading out into the world. A wistful smile came to the older man's lips as he remembered their parting all those years ago.

"Glad to hear it." He smiled, gave Yahiko a little nod, and was silent for a moment in thought before saying, "So you've got my 'character for evil' and Kenshin's sakabatou I hope you've been putting them to good use."   
Yahiko shrugged and simply said, "I try."

"Oh, he does more than try." Kaoru's tone carried her pride for the young swordsman as she reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. "He's gotten quite the name for himself by protecting people all over Tokyo." Sanosuke raised an eyebrow.

"Really?"

"Oh stop Kaoru. I've hardly got a 'name for myself' or whatever. I just do what I can to help people out. People picking on others who are weaker than them makes me sick." Kenshin and Sanosuke exchanged a glance; the same look on both their faces the look of pride.

When they got to the Akabeko it was right around the dinner rush. Sano hadn't been to the Akabeko since they had rebuilt and he was happy to see that the new one was just like the old, only bigger and better. When the crew walked into the Akabeko, Tae and Tsubame almost dropped the trays of food they were carrying to rush over to see Sanosuke. They both responded about the same way, giggling and jumping up and down. (It was hard to tell which one of them was the teenager) The other patrons of the Akabeko watched with either amusement or disappointment if it was their waitress that was distracted.

"Oh Sanosuke-san, I can't believe you're really back!" Tae said happily and Tsubame also expressed her disbelief and joy. But Tsubame seemed equally excited to see Yahiko. Sano had to suffer through a couple of hugs in the middle of the Akabeko with everyone staring at them. He didn't mind that much. It was just good to see the Akabeko waitresses again. Tae hadn't changed much but Tsubame had blossomed into a young woman. Not just a young woman, but also a good-looking one. She was a little too young for him, of course, but just right for Yahiko. _The two of them look good together._

"Yup, I'm back! So we came to celebrate!" His mind quickly got back to the task at hand.

"Follow us and we'll show you to the private room we use for special gatherings and parties, and then we'll whip up some delicious food for you all!"

"And plenty of sake!" Sano added excitedly.

"Sure thing!" Tae replied as she led them back to the private room. The back room was nice and spacious and had a few tables and one big one that easily seated the whole group. "I almost want to kick everyone else out of the Akabeko so we can celebrate with you." Tae commented while they were all seated. "I know what we'll do. I'm going to go put up a closed sign and not take any more customers, and that way when those that are already here are finished we'll have the whole place to ourselves!" Tsubame almost jumped for joy and Tae was beaming. The rest of the group cheered and agreed in their own way.

They all talked, laughed, and joked around while they waited for Tae to bring them their food and drink. "Before we get too carried away" Sano began but Yahiko interrupted.

"You mean before you get drunk?" There was no sense in denying it. Sano just grinned and continued.

"Before I get drunk, I think we should make some plans to get EVERYONE together so we can have a real party!"

Kenshin thought to himself, _Same old Sanosuke_. Aloud he said, "That sounds like a great idea Sano. We'll send word to Kyoto and Aizu first thing tomorrow."

"Well, you can send word to Kyoto but I was thinking that I'll probably head over to Aizu tomorrow and bring the fox lady myself." Several grins popped up on the faces of the group.

"Ok, that should work." Kenshin replied, but decided not to make any further comments on the matter. No sense in making Sano mad. Tae came in carrying a tray of soups and a couple jugs of Sake. Sano's eyes had a certain twinkle in them as he spotted the sake. Tae set the tray down and Sano immediately helped himself to an entire jug.

He took a few long swallows and let the sake slide down his throat and leave a warm feeling in the pit of his stomach. He pulled the jug away from his lips just long enough to get a good gulp of air and say, "This is the first taste of sake I've had in five years!" He then downed the rest of the bottle in an impressive display of alcoholism. "Nothing like it in the world!" He said with a contented laugh as he slammed the empty jug on the wooden floor. "Tae, we're going to need, MORE sake!" Yahiko laughed, Kenshin and Kaoru smiled, Kenji wasn't paying attention, and Outa just shook his head in disappointment.

"You're just like dad." He said and rolled his eyes.

"Nothin' wrong with that!" Sano replied lightheartedly, Outa didn't look convinced. "Come on round cheeks, there's nothing wrong with a little sake. You'll like it when you get older. Trust me! If you're really my little brother, you'll love it." His last comment seemed to win Outa over and Kaoru wondered if she had just witnessed the birth of a future binge drinker.

"Oh, don't let this idiot try and convince you of anything you should decide for yourself." Kaoru advised Outa. He agreed with her, but Kaoru knew a certain part of Outa was still thinking about what Sanosuke had said. His desire to be accepted by his older brother would probably outweigh any clear thinking on the matter. Oh well, Sano was right about one thing. There was nothing wrong with a little Sake. Kaoru took one of the other jugs of sake and said, "Here you go Kenshin." Kenshin held his sake cup while Kaoru poured.

"Thank you Kaoru. Now allow me." He took the jug from her hand tenderly, holding her hand in his for a moment, and then poured for her. Their eyes were locked the entire time. Sanosuke watched the affectionate display of sake pouring with his usual grin.

"Chikusho Kenshin, that's not how you drink." He slammed a jug in front of Kenshin and grabbed another for himself. Kenshin eyed the jug a moment and then looked down at the nice small sake cup in his hand. "Come on, Kenshin Let's go. Man to man." It was only dinnertime and Sanosuke seemed quite ready to get absolutely blasted.

"Sure Sano, but can we wait until after we eat?" Kenshin asked. Sanosuke laughed at him.

"Ok ok, you have till after dinner to get prepared to lose our drinking contest." Yahiko reached across the table and took the jug from in front of Kenshin.

"You want some competition right now why don't you try me?" Sano's eyes lit up. Yahiko looked confident.

"Alright lightweight, but don't blame me when I'm carrying you home. Ready?" They both grabbed their bottles and eyed each other for a moment before chugging the sake. Kaoru and Kenshin cheered them on.

"Come on Yahiko put that rooster-head in his place!" They both finished their entire jug at the same time and slammed them down. Sano looked a little surprised that Yahiko could drink the whole jug without stopping once. They both reached up and wiped their mouths with their forearm at the same moment. Realizing they were doing the exact same thing they both started laughing.

They were still laughing when Tae and Tsubame came back in with the food. The Akabeko waitresses had prepared a feast worthy of the happy celebration. Yahiko and Sanosuke dug right in and seemed like they were competing to see who could eat the most food. They raced to clean their bowls and hand them to Tsubame saying, "more please" each time. Tsubame just giggled and refilled their rice bowls. Tae joined them a little later after the last of the patrons had left. As she sat down to enjoy the meal with her friends Sanosuke asked her. "Hey Tae, how much money do I owe you guys?" Tae looked surprised for a moment and then started doing a calculation in her head.

"Let's see, with interest for the past five years your total comes out to" Kenshin, Kaoru, and Yahiko's jaws all dropped open when Tae rattled off an enormously high amount of money. Sanosuke didn't look surprised at all. He reached into his pocket and casually tossed a pouch to Tae.

"What's this?" She asked as she opened it up. The pouch was full of money.

"Sanosuke-san!" She cried out in surprise. "I can't take all this!" Sano looked smug.

"Keep it, it's what I owe you and it should be enough to pay for dinner tonight." Tae did a quick calculation.

"Well, actually you're still ten yen short of fully paying off your tab!" Sano's grin dropped off his face. "Oh don't worry, tonight will be my special treat!"

"Where'd you get all that money?" Yahiko and Kaoru asked at the same moment. Even if he hadn't fully paid off his tab it was still a substantial amount of cash.

"You think I traveled all over the world broke?" The rest of the group looked at each other and the general consensus on their faces seemed to say yes.

"Sano, you weren't beating people up for money again were you?" Kaoru asked finally. Sanosuke wasn't offended, in fact he laughed.

"Hehe, no I did THAT for free."

"So where did you get all this money from?" Yahiko asked. Sanosuke glared at him like didn't want to admit something.

"I worked! Geeze!" Everyone looked shocked. Sano didn't find it very funny. "You guys think for some reason I'm incapable of working a little?" There was no comment from his friends. Yahiko broke the silence after a long moment.

"So what kind of work did you DO?" His imagination was having a hard time fitting Sanosuke into the working class.

"All sorts of odd jobs. Mostly a lot of manual labor." Finally Yahiko's imagination kicked in and he could clearly picture Sanosuke taking a hammer to a big rock or hauling heavy objects. Similar pictures popped up in the minds of the rest of Sanosuke's friends. Sano gave them each a glare and grabbed at another jug of sake.

After the food was gone and everyone had had his or her fill, Sanosuke slammed down a jug of sake in front of Kenshin. By this point he was hammered but Kenshin had only been drinking a little with his meal.

"You're turn, Kenshin." Sano's cheeks were a little red and his eyes were a little bleary, but he looked just as happy and confident as ever.

"Yeah take him Kenshin." Yahiko called out. He was also more than a little intoxicated. Tsubame was sitting close by his side and she giggled. Kenshin turned to look at Kaoru who gave him the "go ahead". Kenshin looped his hand through the cord of the jug and waited for Sano. Sano took a minute to get his hand through the holding rope of the sake jug. When he finally figured it out he looked up at Kenshin and said, "Go!" Sake jugs raised to their lips as the two men began. Not wanting to look bad in front of his friend Kenshin finished the entire jug and slammed it down. Sanosuke seemed to be having a little trouble and ended up slamming his jug down a moment after Kenshin. He looked at Kenshin with a sloppy grin.

"Oh I see! You were just stalling so you could beat me." His speech was slurred and he was talking a little louder than usual. "I call rematch." He grabbed at another jug of sake and ended up knocking it over. Yahiko burst out laughing as Sanosuke swore and tried to catch it before all the sake drained out.

Kenshin was quick to say, "Well you figured me out Sanosuke. I cheated, you win!" But Sanosuke would have none of it. He insisted on a rematch and handed Kenshin another large jug of Sake. Kenshin humored him one more time but this time he let Sanosuke win to avoid another rematch. Sanosuke may have been drunk but he wasn't blind.

"Teme Kenshin! Now you let me win! REMATCH!"

The stupidity continued for another hour before Kenshin, Yahiko, and especially Sanosuke were too drunk to continue. It took the help of Tae and Tsubame to get the three men back to the dojo.

Once there, Kenshin promptly passed out in his bedroom while Yahiko and Sanosuke tried to refresh themselves by dunking their heads in the cold well water. By the time that they'd regained the ability to walk without falling over, it was only late evening.

"That was fun." Sano commented to Yahiko as he plopped down on the back porch of the dojo next to the young man.

"Aa." Yahiko smiled drunkenly.

"So what are we going to do tonight?" Sano's eyebrows rose questioningly. Yahiko blinked at him in disbelief but Sano was serious.

"Tonight? I think we're prolly gonna pass out and call it a day." Yahiko slurred. It was pretty hard to focus what with all the alcohol in his system. Sano continued as though he hadn't heard Yahiko at all.

"You like gambling?"

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For those of you who have read the manga you know that Yahiko was a little alcoholic. The idea that he likes to drink at the age of 15 made sense to me. And yeah, Sano and Yahiko have quite a few similarities don't they? I'm not making it up! Really! They're a lot alike in both the anime and the manga. :) 

And now we get to see the two of them go out and... *gasp* ...gamble!! If you take a drunk Sano, a drunk Yahiko, an uncanny winning streak, and angry dudes at the gambling parlor, what do you get? Find out in the next chapter!! 

  



	7. Chapter 6: One Word, Bad

Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

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**Chapter 6: One Word, Bad**

Two hours later Kaoru was surprised when Yahiko and Sanosuke came and told her they were going out. "Where's Kenshin at?" Sanosuke asked.

"My dear husband passed out when we got back." Kaoru said sarcastically. "And you two are in no shape to go wandering around. You'll probably forget where you live."

"Well, when we remember we'll be back." Sanosuke didn't look too concerned. "Besides we've had two hours to sober up, I'm fine." The two of them had spent at least half an hour of that time taking turns dunking each other's heads in the well.

"Well, I'm not going to try and stop you two. You're both grown men so go do whatever you want. Just be careful, ok?" Sanosuke and Yahiko grinned and nodded as they turned with a wave and left the Kamiya Kasshin Dojo. Kaoru watched them go and couldn't help feeling glad that Kenshin had already passed out.

While they walked along Sano and Yahiko got into a lively discussion. There were some things that neither of them wanted to talk about in front of Kaoru and Kenshin. (Mostly Kaoru) Yahiko began to tell a little bit more about how he'd kicked the crap out of all sorts of bad guys and Sano had some interesting stories about how he'd spent a good portion of his time traveling the world. As they neared their destination, Sanosuke finished up one of his stories.

"They chased you for three days?" Yahiko asked in disbelief.

"Yup, those guys were crazy. I finally stopped, got off my horse, and waited for them to catch up to me there in the middle of the desert." Sano paused dramatically.

"And then what happened?" Yahiko was eating it all up.

"When they caught up and found me standing there waiting, they were so intimidated that they rode back off into the desert!" Sano and Yahiko both broke out laughing as they pushed open the door to the gambling parlor. Inside the building was full of men gathered together on straw mats. One man at each mat had a cup and two dice. The room was filled with the sound of laughing, talking, and yelling. Yahiko glanced around taking in the sights. He and Yutarou had actually come out gambling quite a few times. It was one of those things that he just kept forgetting to mention to Kaoru and Kenshin. Of course, most of the places he'd been weren't anything like the gambling parlors Sanosuke liked to gamble at. The gambling looked serious. There were also scantily clad women walking among the men with trays of sake and food. The men all seemed rough and half of them were carrying swords right in the open. As one of the women walked by Sano helped himself to a jug of sake and started making his way to one of the least crowded mats. Yahiko followed him feeling a little out of place.

"If you want some Sake just take it." Sano turned back to Yahiko and spoke loud enough to be heard over the constant din. "They make enough money here they can just give it away." Yahiko helped himself to a jug as he brushed up against one of the women in the revealing outfits. Yahiko almost blushed as he looked down and got a pretty good look at her cleavage. Sano looked back and grinned at him. "See anything you like?" Yahiko didn't respond to Sano's teasing question. They finally made it to the mat and Sano edged his way in. Some of the guys at the mat moved over allowing the larger man to get in on the betting. "Oi Yahiko." Sano turned back and held out one hand expectantly in Yahiko's direction.

"What?" Yahiko looked from his hand to his face and then back at his hand.

"You got some cash?" The other gamblers were placing their bets. Yahiko blinked in disbelief.

"What!? You brought me out gambling and you don't even have any money?"

"Of course I don't have any money. I just gave my entire five-year savings to Tae. Now give me some money or we won't get in on the betting." Yahiko angrily reached into his sleeve pocket and took out his money. He went to open the pouch and hand some of the cash to Sano but the older man simply grabbed the entire thing and dumped it out in the betting area calling out happily; "Even, snake eyes!"

The other people placed their bets and the dice were rolled. Yahiko closed his eyes not wanting to witness the loss of his savings. Sano let out an exclamation of excitement and when Yahiko opened his eyes he saw the dice had come up snake eyes. Some of the men congratulated Sanosuke and others swore. The large pile of cash was pushed over to Sanosuke who turned to Yahiko with a grin. He had in one roll of the dice won more money than Yahiko had ever had his hands on at any time in his life. Yahiko swore.

"Kuso Sanosuke, let's take the money and call it a night!" Sanosuke laughed and replied.

"Oh no, we're just getting started! You call it this time." Yahiko felt like he was really being put on the spot. Sanosuke slid the entire pile of money into the betting spot.

"All or nothing." He said to Yahiko with a nod of encouragement and a look that seemed to say, "don't screw this up". Yahiko thought hard for a moment, trying to decide what the dice would turn up. He stared in concentration at the dice being held between the roller's fingers. He went with his instincts and called out, "Odds, five and two." The dice were slammed down on the mat and the cup removed. The dice showed a five and a two. Sanosuke slapped Yahiko on the back. "Thatta boy! Ha ha!" The other betters were impressed. Once again, the entire pile of cash slid in front of Sanosuke. Sano took a long swig of his sake and told Yahiko to make the call again.

As the night progressed the two of them had almost unnatural success. Sano was loving it. "My luck has changed!" He called out happily as the dice showed up in their favor once again. "You're incredible Yahiko!" Sano and Yahiko had both really gotten into the game and the free sake. Some of the other customers there at the gambling parlor were not so happy about their success, needless to say.

As Sanosuke laughingly pulled his winnings to his and Yahiko's pile some of the men who had been betting at their mat glanced at each other. The group spokesperson took out a dagger and stabbed it into the mat angrily.

"Cheaters!" He yelled out. The parlor got quiet. Everyone turned in the direction of the man with the drawn dagger.

"Take your disagreements outside." One of the house "bouncers" told the angry man and his friends. The air suddenly filled with the sound of swords clicking free of their scabbards. "Don't draw your weapons in here!" The bouncer warned the armed group of men who were surrounding Yahiko and Sanosuke.

"These men are cheaters and we're taking our money back!"

"Guys, guys." Sano put his hands in the air waving them calmly. "There seems to be some mistake" The men swore angrily and clutched at their weapons. Sano quickly noticed they were surrounded and a happy grin burst onto his face. "But if you'd like to take this outside that's fine with me." Sano held his hands up in surrender. He sounded intoxicated.

"Take 'em outside!" The man with the dagger yelled to his companions. Hands grabbed them from all sides and started pulling them along. Yahiko looked frantic and quite ready to attack but Sanosuke shot him a warning look and indicated the other onlookers with a flick of his eyes. There were scared serving girls and enough armed men to cause quite a disturbance if the fight happened in the building. Yahiko searched Sano's face and realized that his friend knew what he was doing even though he still appeared to be drunk.

Sano and Yahiko were tossed into the street in the back alley behind the gambling parlor. Yahiko landed hard and felt the wind knocked out of his lungs. He'd never fought drunk and momentarily doubted his and Sano's chances of escaping unscathed. He looked over at Sano who seemed barely able to stand after hours of drinking. The door closed behind the angry men, leaving them alone with Sano and Yahiko.

When the door shut it was as though a magical transformation took place. Sano jumped to his feet nimbly. "Only ten of you huh?" He cracked his knuckles. The men stepped back in surprise. They had fully thought they were about to beat on two helpless drunk men. Sano's one-sided grin and darkly flashing eyes were enough to shake their confidence. It took Yahiko only another moment to get to his feet, and soon he was standing at Sanosuke's side looking menacing. The leader was not so easily frightened as his men.

"Get 'em!" He yelled and came at Sanosuke with his dagger. Some of the other men drew their swords or knives or just came at them with fists. The man with the dagger reached Sanosuke first and was the first one to feel defeat at his capable hands. Sanosuke caught his wrist and squeezed, there was an audible crack and the man dropped his dagger screaming in pain. A hard blow to the face left him crumpled on the ground unconscious. The entire event had barely even taken two seconds.

Yahiko's first opponent swung his sword in attempt to slice open the young swordsman. Yahiko watched the katana as the man swung and he lashed out with his left hand catching the blade between two fingers. With a quick twist of his wrist the sword flew from the man's hand and landed harmlessly behind Yahiko.

Sano ignored the men trying to fight him and turned in Yahiko's direction. "Oooooooo, Yahiko! What was that?" He asked as he shoved his elbow into an assailant's stomach nonchalantly. Yahiko smiled menacingly at his opponents who all stopped dead in their tracks.

"Oh just a little trick I've picked up." He commented casually though he kept his fearsome look glued to the four men.

"Ya Yahiko? Myoujin Yahiko, master of the shirahadori??" The four men looked shocked. They glanced at each other and then back at Yahiko. Yahiko just gave them a cold glare that seemed to confirm their fears. "Let's get out of here!" The four men took off running and Yahiko watched them go. After they disappeared into the dark of the night, he turned and found Sanosuke standing with his hands in his pockets and a big grin on his face. One of his feet casually rested on the pile of his defeated opponents.

"So Jochan was right, you really have gotten a name for yourself!"

"I guess you could say that." Yahiko laughed casually and came over to inspect Sano's handiwork. "Looks like you haven't lost your touch either."

"I guess you could say that." Sanosuke echoed Yahiko, the cocky look still on his face. "But that really was a pathetic fight, ne?"

"Aa. Well let's get out of here before the cops show up."

"Good thinking, I'd hate for them to realize I'm back in Japan and come chasing after me again." The two of them hurried off down a side alley and it wasn't until a few minutes later that they realized that they'd left their pile of winnings inside the gambling parlor. Both men swore for a while and finally decided to forget about it, figuring that the cops would already be sniffing around the scene. Once they were far enough away and Yahiko had finally given up hope of getting his money back they resumed their casual stroll.

"So Sanosuke, what did you do to get the cops chasing you in the first place? I mean, I heard the story but I was wondering why?" Sano thought for a moment, trying to remember the circumstances surrounding his forced departure from Japan. Though five years and all the sake worked to dim his memory there was no way he could forget the situation that changed his life.

"Well, I basically picked a fight with one of the Ishin Shishi who used his political power to try and crush me. It's the usual story about those corrupt Meiji bastards. The guy was backing a silk racket in my hometown, trying to take over the place and corner the market. All the townsfolk would have been out of jobs and money and returned to their former poverty. I can't stand it when the bureaucrats take advantage of the little people. I gave him a piece of my mind and a good taste of my fists." Sanosuke smiled and held up a clenched fist, remembering the look of terror on Tani's face as he'd walked in to beat him up. The recollection was still vivid though the event had taken place five years earlier. "Apparently the guy hadn't taken too kindly to the idea that one person had single handedly put a stop to his entire operation. But with his political power it was easy to make me out to be the bad guy." Sano's jaw clenched and he was quietly lost in thought for a few moments. "They're always turning things around like that." Sano trailed off while Yahiko walked in silence. Sano sighed but didn't say anything else. One thing he had learned in his five-year journey was that complaining didn't accomplish anything.

As they walked on, Yahiko refrained from starting any other conversations. He could tell that Sano was still thinking about things that he had probably not thought about in a long time. He was right. Sano was lost deep in thought. The distraction combined with an evening of drinking made it impossible for Sano or Yahiko to detect a presence hiding in the shadows of a nearby alley. It was dark and Yahiko quickly procured a light so they could make their way back to his place. The illumination was insufficient to reveal the person standing in the alley as they walked by. It was only a moment before the attack that Sano finally sensed the battle aura or ken ki.

"Get down!" Sanosuke yelled as he pushed Yahiko aside. Something hard slammed into the back of his head with enough force to knock him forward, sprawling to the ground. Yahiko jumped aside with the help of Sano's well-timed warning and shove. He turned to see Sano crash to the ground face first. A figure holding a sheathed sword and wearing a dark cloak rushed toward him and Yahiko brought up the light to block the attack. At the last second the figure pulled his sword free of the sheath and cut the wooden handle, Yahiko's light fell to the ground igniting itself and quickly burning out. The moon cast only enough light for Yahiko to make out the shapes of more figures up on the rooftops of the nearest buildings. A few more dark shapes came sliding out from the back alleys, surrounding them. "Sano?" Yahiko called out trying to figure out if Sanosuke was still conscious.

Sanosuke pushed himself to his feet, tenderly feeling the back of his head. There was a nice sore spot and something warm running back through his hair. His fingers came away sticky and coated with blood. He realized that they were about to be participants in their second fight of the night and a smile spread itself across his rugged features. "I'm alright. How about you?" Yahiko dodged a vicious slash from the shadowy figure's katana.

"I'm just fine." Yahiko returned as he caught his opponent's blade between his hands. There was the sound of muffled surprise as Yahiko twisted the sword out of the shadowy figure's hands. The dark figures on the roof jumped down and drew their swords. Yahiko drove his clenched fist into the figure's face and the man went down with a grunt. Sanosuke quickly found himself the object of attention as three of the men from the alley rushed him. Sano dodged the first of his attackers and as the man lunged past with sword extended, Sanosuke punched the blade. The timing was perfect. The katana seemed to vibrate in the man's hand for a moment and then it shattered into tiny fragments. The man clutched at his wrist as his hand seemed to burst at the same moment. He screamed in agony while Sanosuke danced around his second attacker's lunge and hit the man in the back of the head with a brutal roundhouse kick. His third opponent swung but Sanosuke quickly dodged out of the way, finding an opening and nailing the man in the face with a powerful punch sending him crashing into his two friends. The remaining shadowy figures stood back by the buildings watching the two fighters. Yahiko and Sanosuke backed up until they were in the middle of the ring of attackers. Yahiko rested his hand on the sakabatou and Sanosuke fell into his fighting stance.

"That it?" Sanosuke called out mockingly to the ring of figures. A quick count showed that there were about twenty of them standing in the ring, swords still sheathed.

"Who are you guys?" Yahiko called out to the figures when they didn't respond to Sanosuke's jibe.

"It's nothing personal, but you two have been marked for death." One of the shadowy figures spoke, though Yahiko couldn't tell which one. "Now die." As one the twenty men drew their swords.

"Nani?" Yahiko asked in disbelief. "What's going on? Who sent you?" The cloaked figures did not respond except to point their swords in their direction and walk towards them. As the ring of swords approached, Sanosuke turned to Yahiko and gave him a reassuring smile.

"Can you fly Yahiko?" He laced the fingers on his two hands together creating a sort of foothold. Yahiko immediately knew what he was thinking and nimbly put his foot into Sanosuke's hands. With his incredible strength Sanosuke launched Yahiko up into the air. The shadowy figures were about to rush toward Sano when he suddenly used both hands to punch the ground. A shock wave rumbled through the ground in all directions, sending all twenty of the men flying back through walls and into the alleys. A moment later Yahiko touched down on the ground beside Sanosuke.

"That technique! You perfected it?" Yahiko asked in amazement looking around at the unconscious figures. "I remember you doing that to one of those four men we fought back when we were rescuing Kaoru from Enishi, but it was nothing like that!" There was a small circular crater surrounding Sano and the dust was still settling. Sanosuke stood and absently rubbed his right hand.

"Futae no Kiwami with both hands. I had plenty of opportunity to perfect it while traveling through Mongolia and Arabia. You should see what that does to a sand dune." Yahiko remembered the fight years ago on the beach of Enishi's island. Sanosuke had shot sand everywhere with the attack before he had perfected it so Yahiko could only imagine what it would do to a pile of sand now.

Yahiko and Sanosuke turned in surprise to hear the sound of a gun being cocked. Thirty feet away one of the men had gotten to his feet and pulled a revolver from his dark cloak. "Gun!" Yahiko and Sanosuke both warned each other. Yahiko pulled the sakabatou from its sheath and traced it along the ground making rocks, dirt, and a powerful blast of air race toward the man. In the exact moment, Sanosuke extended the fingers on his right hand in a sort of open handed punch and drove his hand into the ground. As Anji the God of Destruction had done with a blade, Sanosuke sent a channeled burst of Futae no Kiwami racing beside Yahiko's Do Ryu Sen to smash into the man pointing the gun at them. The man was no match for either of the attacks, let alone a combined front. He flew back through the air screaming as he went. The gun fell from his grip and collapsed harmlessly to the ground.

Sanosuke and Yahiko stood and grinned at each other then walked toward the man who was moaning in agony but apparently still conscious. As they passed the gun Sano stooped to pick it up. He turned his head to give Yahiko a look and then tossed the gun into the air. Yahiko flipped the sakabatou and sliced the gun in two as it fell. He sheathed the sakabatou with a click before the pieces of the gun touched the ground.

"Why'd you guys attack us? Who set you up to this?" Sano asked the man as he pulled him up by the front of his cloak. The hood fell away revealing a man with a shaved head that had his face, head, and neck totally painted black. The man tried to respond but he lapsed into unconsciousness.

"Hmmmm" Sanosuke muttered, as he looked the man over. "I seem to remember hearing about some group of hired assassins who work from the shadows and paint their heads black. They're an efficient way of getting rid of someone that's opposing you or your organization. Only the richest Yakuza can afford them though. They have a guarantee policy, if I remember right. They don't even take a down payment until they've completed their assignment. These guys took a lot of my business back when I was a fighter for hire especially since I wouldn't kill." Sano's eyes darkened and he dropped the man back to the ground.

"What did they want with US though?" Yahiko asked in confusion. "For crying out loud Sano, you just got here TODAY! How could anyone possibly know you were back and hire these guys?" Sano's look told Yahiko that he didn't have a clue. The noise of the battle had apparently drawn the attention of the people who lived in the area and lights were beginning to shine out from the buildings. Someone screamed when they found an unconscious man lying in their house and a hole in their wall.

"Time to get scarce." Sano told Yahiko as the two of them took off running for the second time that night. A figure stood in the shadows and watched the two depart. He leaned against one of the buildings and smiled in satisfaction. That worked well. He thought to himself as he turned and walked out of the alley away from the scene. His tall blonde hair blew casually in the wind and he patted his favorite sword. When police arrived on the scene they found the group of assassins unconscious and in sorry shape. Most of them suffered from foot and leg injuries that seemed to be caused by extreme force. A strange circular indent was left in the middle of the blast radius. The assassins were arrested for destruction of public property, carrying illegal weapons, and disturbing the peace. An anonymous tip reported that the dark cloaked figures were also attempting to murder two men. The identity of the two individuals was not known and no description could be given, except that one of them 'kinda looked like a big chicken.' When the assassins were taken down to the prison one members of the Keishichou (Japanese Secret Police) was there waiting. He threw down a thick file and informed the police that the group of assassins was wanted for the murder of at least fifty-three people. The case was shut. _Now on to more important matters._ The blonde man thought to himself.

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Shirahadori is the title given to Yahiko at the end of the manga by common street thugs. (you know, all the nameless bad guys Yahiko and the others protect people from) Shirahadori means 'sword grabber' and it seems the young swordsman has perfected some interesting techniques!

What did Sano and Yahiko do to get targeted by the mysterious black cloaked guys? And who's this blonde haired secret police agent? (hope you can guess the answer to that one) Is there something else going on here? Find out in the next chapter! 


	8. Chapter 7: Revelations

Untitled Document 

Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

-----------------------

**Chapter 7: Revelations**

Light streamed in through the windows. Yahiko slowly opened his eyes and regretted it. His head was throbbing like it had never throbbed before. He stared up at the familiar ceiling and wondered briefly how he had gotten back to hisapartment. Vague memories came to mind of him and Sano running through the darkness and eventually reaching Sano's old place that Yahiko now called his own. Yahiko slowly glanced around the room. He was alone. _Where's Sano?_

Yahiko sat up abruptly and the hangover hit him like a hammer. He slowly sunk back onto the futon moaning pitifully. It was a few good minutes before Yahiko attempted to get up again. This time he succeeded and barely remembered to grab his sakabatou before heading out the door in search of his missing friend.

"Yahiko! You look terrible!" Kaoru chided him when he stumbled into the dojo.

"Rough night." He commented, too tired and sick to argue with her. "Have you seen Sanosuke?"

"Oh, he was here this morning for breakfast." At the mention of food Yahiko had a sudden urge to puke. He held it down, barely. Kaoru didn't seem to notice. "And then he headed off to Aizu to pick up Megumi."

"You can't tell me he was in any sort of shape to ride over to Aizu." Yahiko didn't believe her. He felt terrible and he knew Sanosuke had been there drinking with him the whole time. Not to mention that Sanosuke had been OUT drinking him most of the night.

"Actually I think he was going on foot." Kaoru commented. Yahiko's jaw dropped open. "Well, I was just finishing up lunch if you want to stick around."

"No food thanks. It's hard enough to hold down your cooking when I'm feeling fine." Kaoru pulled back a fist to nail him but he winced and held up his hands begging her not too. He looked so pathetic that she didn't even swing.

"Well, some soup will probably do you good. And even I don't screw up miso soup. Come on." She took him by the arm and towed him toward the house muttering something about taking care of drunks. She took him to the eating room and pushed him inside. He stumbled in and sat down, feeling too bad to argue. Outa and Kenji were sitting in the room already. Kenji was playing with his food and he took a piece of fried tofu and threw it at Yahiko. Yahiko just sat there looking quite hung over and let the tofu smack him in the face. Kenji giggled while Outa scolded him. The sound of slow footsteps came from the hallway. A moment later Kenshin staggered into the room looking about as bad as Yahiko felt.

"Well, look who's finally up!" Kaoru's voice commented from the hallway. Kenshin winced putting a hand to his forehead.

"Could you please keep it down dear? My head is killing me." His voice was uncharacteristically gruff though polite as ever. He walked into the room and sat down beside Kenji and across from Yahiko. Yahiko had some tofu on his face and he stared off at nothing with his mouth partially open.

"Mornin' Yahiko." Kenshin gave him a little nod of acknowledgement. Yahiko blinked a moment and brought his eyes into focus.

"Oi, Kenshin." Yahiko greeted him sounding pathetic. The two just sat there staring at each other for a moment while Kaoru poured them some soup. When she placed the bowls in front of them Yahiko and Kenshin both looked down at them for a few minutes trying to decide if they wanted to chance Kaoru's cooking.

"Is Sano sleeping still or did the Sake kill him?" Kenshin asked as he looked around slowly realizing that someone was missing. Kaoru replied cheerily and Yahiko and Kenshin both found her voice and the message terribly annoying.

"No, he took off pretty early this morning for Aizu. He stopped by, had some breakfast, got directions to Megumi's place, and took off running."

On the road to Aizu a cheerful, and quite healthy, Sano was running along at top speed with a fishbone sticking out of one corner of his mouth and a grin that would have made both Kenshin and Yahiko hit him if he'd been around the dojo for lunch. He'd already been running nonstop since breakfast and he had a good chunk of his trip behind him. All sorts of interesting thoughts were floating through his head as he ran toward Aizu though none of them involved his adventures of the night before or his two hung over friends. Oddly enough, Yahiko and Kenshin both had a pretty clear picture of Sanosuke running to Aizu in their heads.

"Damn him." Yahiko muttered under his breath. Kenshin heard him and nodded his agreement.

"You say something Yahiko?" Kaoru asked. He just shook his head. "Oh, by the way, I sent out a letter to Kyoto while you two were sleeping. If all goes well our friends in Kyoto will be over here about the same time that Sanosuke gets back with Megumi."

"He's not coming right back after he picks her up?" Yahiko asked a moment later when he realized that Megumi lived closer than Kyoto.

"No, he said he was going to spend a little time in Aizu and then come back in time for Misao and Aoshi's arrival. I think he wanted to have an excuse to spend more time with Megumi, if you ask me." Kaoru was grinning. "Oh shoot, I totally forgot to tell him her good news! Oh well."

"It's probably better that way. I'm sure Megumi-dono would prefer to tell him herself." Kaoru agreed with her husband as she started eating her lunch. Yahiko and Kenshin were still staring at their bowls of miso soup when they felt the presence outside the gate. They both looked up at the same moment, instantly shook off their hangovers, and jumped to their feet.

"What is it guys?" Kaoru asked them in concern as they headed outside. They were both looked ready for anything though a moment before they barely looked awake. The front gate opened up and the man outside was surprised to find Yahiko and Kenshin both standing there with their hands resting on their swords. Sawagejou Chou gave them a look and then sighed disappointedly.

"Why can't I ever sneak up on you guys?"

"Chou." Kenshin eyed the Keishichou agent. He didn't seem to be there to cause trouble so Kenshin moved his hand away from the sword at his belt.

"Surprised to see me?" He asked as he casually walked into the yard.

"Very." Kenshin replied. There was something wrong. Kenshin took a look at Yahiko and knew he was feeling it too. "What brings us the pleasure of your visit Chou?" Chou was looking around, inspecting the surroundings. He turned and gave them an icy look.

"I'm here for your friend, Sagara Sanosuke." Kenshin and Yahiko's eyes narrowed.

"What?" Yahiko asked coldly.

"You heard me. I'm here for the rooster-head. Where is he?"

"He's not here." Kenshin replied. "You need to tell us what's going on."

"There's not much to explain. My sources told me that Sagara was back in Japan and it's my job to get a hold of him."

"You mean arrest him?" Yahiko asked though it was more like a statement. He was starting to get angry. Chou gave Yahiko a look and then his coldness seemed to melt away and he sighed.

"Relax kid Look, I just really need to find him. It's a matter of some importance. If he's here let me talk to him and I'll explain the situation."

"I told you, he's not here. Perhaps you can explain anyway?" Chou turned to Kenshin and seemed to mull over it in his mind for a minute.

"No, I think I'll wait for the rooster-head. When are you expecting him back?"

"We're not sure. He took off this morning." Kenshin was all business.

"Fine, well I'll be keeping an eye on the place so don't do anything stupid." Chou kicked back into threat mode.

"Such as?" Kenshin asked raising an eyebrow.

"_Anything_ stupid." Chou returned, eyes narrowed, and face serious.

"If you think we're going to hand Sanosuke over to you without some sort of explanation then you're mistaken." Yahiko stepped up boldly. Chou looked frustrated for a moment and then his harsh exterior melted away.

"Che, you guys are terrible to deal with. Look, I'm not supposed to say anything but well," he swore and then continued. "We need his help."

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The secret police need Sano's help with what? *ponder* I bet you'll find out if you keep reading! Next chapter, Sano and Megumi are reunited, but things don't go the way Sano planned. Read on!


	9. Chapter 8: Its Gonna Rain

Untitled Document 

Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

-----------------------

**Chapter 8: It's Gonna Rain**

Sanosuke walked down a street in Aizu looking at the sheet with directions to Megumi's place. It was evening and not only was Sano hungry and sweaty, he was also lost and it looked like it was going to rain any minute. He swore for about the hundredth time and walked back the way he had came.

"Let's see. Take a left at the sukiyaki place and no, that can't be right." He growled and walked back in the direction he had originally been walking. He finally found a house that seemed to fit all the descriptions. He looked around and located the family name on the front gate, reading it to himself to be sure. "Takani." He smiled and walked up to the front door giving it a good solid knock. _Won't she be surprised to see me!_

When a tall, good looking, man in his early thirties opened the door Sanosuke's grin vanished. He was perfect, perfect for HER. By appearance, this man was everything he was not. Sano took a staggering step backwards as though he had received a blow in the pit of his stomach. The man looked at him oddly.

"Can I help you?" He asked. Then, a beautifully familiar voice called out from a back room.

"Who is it, Seki? Tell them to come back later, your dinner will get cold." Her tone was happy and spoke of her intimacy with the man standing at the door. Sanosuke suddenly felt more fear and confusion than he had ever felt in his life. All at once he wanted to scream, break something, hurt someone, run away, but most of all leave Aizu, possibly Japan, and never return. He was afraid to open his mouth. He had nothing to say. The only thing clear in his mind was the words: _I am a fool._

"Are you alright?" The man asked as Sanosuke stood there with so many different emotions crossing his face. Sano's appearance and level of distraction seemed to coincide with someone who was either crazy or suffering from a head injury. Overhead a loud crack of thunder boomed and it started to rain. Inside Sano's head, something cracked at the same moment. Sanosuke took a step back off the porch. His eyes were frozen on the man with a hollow look in them. The man took a step toward him looking like he wanted to stop him or help him. "Is something wrong?" The man asked again, he seemed genuinely concerned. It was too much for Sanosuke.

"No, sorry to bother you." His voice was eerily calm though Sano had no idea how he'd managed it. Something was going cold inside him. _I don't care._ He told himself. _I never cared._ He turned without another word and walked away from the house. The man called out but Sanosuke ignored him. The rain poured down on him and ran into his eyes. He blinked them in frustration and felt moisture that he knew wasn't just from the rain. _I am a fool._ When he got to the front gate it seemed like something that was placed directly in his way to keep him from escaping. Fists balled up at his sides and his jaw clenched as he stood glaring at the gate. He pulled his fist back to deliver a shattering blow to the obstacle when he heard her voice again.

"I don't know who you are or what you want but if you break that gate you're going to pay for it." She sounded as firm and unwavering as ever. From the tone in her voice it was obvious that she really didn't recognize him. Sano didn't want her to recognize him either. He didn't want to turn around and see her. Unfortunately, his body seemed to have a mind of its own. He began to turn, slowly, and painfully.   
She stood in the rain, looking defiant and beautiful. Hands posed angrily on her hips as she stood glaring in his direction. Time had been kind to her. She seemed even more beautiful than before. _Or is that just my imagination?_ Slightly in front of her, the man Sano had seen before stood holding a large stick pointed in Sano's direction threateningly. "Stay back Megumi, he could be dangerous." Sano's eyes met hers and recognition replaced the cold look of unfamiliarity.

"Kami-sama" Megumi's eyes went wide and her mouth opened partially. Her hand covered her mouth as though she too was having difficulty controlling her own body. A long moment passed as the two stared at each other. The rain soaked into their hair and their clothes but for a moment they were both unaware.

"What is it, Megumi?" The man turned to her, concern etched on his features. He kept his weapon pointing in Sano's direction.   
"Sanosuke, what the hell do you think you're doing?" With a casual flick of her wet hair, the confident Megumi that Sano knew stood before him. All traces of her surprise vanished. The man at her side blinked in confusion.

"You know him?"

"Unfortunately. This is that rooster-head I've told you about once or twice." A delicate eyebrow arched wryly as she continued meeting Sano's empty gaze. _Just like that hey?_ Sano thought to himself. _This is how you respond to seeing me after five years?_ _Two can play this game._ Sano dropped his raised fist to his side and stood tall. A grin burst onto his face with false confidence.

"Oi Fox! This is YOUR front gate? I had no idea!"

"The fact that you were about to destroy something at random concerns me, but then again I guess you never were known for your intelligence."

"Well, I've been getting a little frustrated, to tell you the truth. I got directions from Jo-chan this morning but it took me a lot longer to find your place than I thought it would."

"Hmph. Figures it would be something like that. Not one known for intelligence or direction sense."

"Well, now that I'm here, you gonna feed me or do I have to stand out here in the rain all night?"

"Feed you? Don't tell me you came all the way to Aizu for free food?"

"Among other things." Sano shrugged nonchalantly.

"Other things? Like what?" Megumi eyed him suspiciously.

"Che, Fox. You act like I haven't been gone for five years. I get back to Japan and this is the welcome you give me? I can take a hint." Hands dove into his pockets angrily as he spun on his heals and booted the front gate open. _I'll just leave. That'll teach her._

"Wait! Rooster-head, Wait!" Sano involuntarily paused and turned back in her direction as she ran toward him. The man with the stick called after her but she ignored him. "Baka! You're not running off in this rain! As a doctor I cannot allow anyone to put their health at risk for childish reasons." Megumi reached his side and Sano slowly let the front gate swing shut. He turned to confront her.

"Childish reasons? I came to see an old friend and I get kicked out in the rain. Who's being the child?"

"I never said you couldn't stay!" Megumi huffed angrily. Her kimono was soaked and clung to her body in a way that excited Sano.

"You never said I COULD either!"

"Stay rooster-head. I've got some food inside that's getting cold." She sounded frustrated. Sano didn't look appeased. Instead, he clenched his jaw and looked toward the gate longingly. "Please stay!" Megumi's eyes were pleading though her tone carried a hint of unmasked sarcasm. It was about all Sano could hope to get, and he knew it.

"Ok." And just like that, Sano walked off toward the house happily. Megumi had to hurry to keep up with him, the rain soaked kimono impeding her movements. "It'll be good to get out of this rain, I'd hate to catch a cold." Sano turned back and smiled disarmingly at the woman trying to keep up with his long strides.

"And you would too! Running around half naked like that. Where's your shirt? And what have you done to your hair? And what's with that silly beard?" The sound of her scolding voice brought back many memories for Sanosuke.

"Nice to see you too, Fox!"

"Same old Sanosuke." Megumi rolled her eyes. "It's a wonder you survived outside Japan at all!" As they walked by the other man he watched them in confusion. So much had happened in such a short time and he was still trying to sort out exactly what was going on. Sano reached the porch before Megumi and he jumped up onto it and out of the rain. He was hurting inside. _How can I sit here and pretend there's nothing wrong?_ He took a moment to compose himself before he turned back around and watched Megumi walk up the porch steps. "Seki, are you coming or not?" Megumi stood out of the rain next to Sanosuke and turned back to the other man. He turned with a quizzical look on his face.

"So you two know each other? You're friends right?"

"Baka, that's what I said. Now get out of the rain before you get sick. I shouldn't have to explain to fellow doctor such elementary principles of good health." Seki dropped the makeshift weapon to the ground and headed toward them slowly.

"So who's this geek?" Sano asked quietly while he indicated Seki with a subtle head movement. Megumi raised one eyebrow and then lured Sano's ear close to her mouth so she could whisper conspiratorially in his ear.

"HE'S MY BOYFRIEND, IDIOT!!" Sano and Seki both jumped in surprise and Sano also clasped his hand to his ringing ear.   
"ITAI! You don't have to yell, Fox!" It wasn't just his ear that was in pain. The message was more bothersome then a little bit of ringing. She smiled smugly and then hopped down off the porch and into Seki's arms.

"Rooster-head, this is Seki, Seki this is rooster-head." Seki still seemed confused, perhaps even more so. The two walked up the porch arm in arm.

"Uh, I'm sorry." Seki looked embarrassed. "Um, what's you're real name?"

Sano pointed at himself with his thumb gruffly. "I'm Sagara Sanosuke."

"Ah, Sagara-san, that's right. It's a pleasure to meet you." Seki bowed his head respectfully. "Megumi has told me stories about you."  
"Hmmm, I bet. Nice to meet you too, though I think you must be crazy to be interested in a woman like her."

"Hohohohoho!" Megumi laughed lightly with her hand held over her mouth. "Seki just has a great sense of taste unlike SOME men out there." She laughed again and held the man tighter. Seki smiled weakly at Sano.

"Well Sagara-san, we were going to sit down to dinner. Please join us."

"Love to." Sano didn't sound thrilled.

When they finally got inside, Seki showed Sano to the dining room and then he headed off to help Megumi bring the rest of the food out from the kitchen. Once he was alone, Sano sighed dejectedly. _What am I doing here? If there wasn't free food involved I'd hit the road right now_ He knew it wasn't really true. Some morbid curiosity forced him to stay and watch Megumi and the guy she called her boyfriend. Sano hoped that was all it was. _Boyfriend well maybe there's still a chance. It's not like she's married or anything._ Sano's head jerked up as he realized what was going on in his mind. _What the hell am I thinking? What would I care even if she WAS married?? She and I have nothing between us and have NEVER had anything between us. Why am I thinking all this stuff all of a sudden?_

His internal monologue was interrupted as Seki and Megumi came into the room with the food. Sano watched Megumi place a tray of food in front of him and then sit down elegantly next to Seki. Not just next to the guy, but practically in his lap. Sano's hand clenched involuntarily and snapped his pair of wooden chopsticks in two. _Chikusho! What's wrong with me?_

"Here, Sagara-san." Seki handed him his own pair of fresh chopsticks. Without a word he rose to his feet to get himself another pair.   
"Oh Seki, you don't need to be so polite to the rooster-head." Megumi called out warmly to the man as he walked down the hallway. _Am I jealous?_

Seki's voice echoed from the hallway. "He's our guest Megumi-chan." _CHAN? How cute_ It wasn't cute. Sano wanted to puke.   
Megumi turned to Sano and smiled warmly. "So rooster-head, you finally decided to come back to Japan? What exactly have you been doing for the last five years?" Sano scooped a mouthful of rice into his mouth and chewed a moment before answering with his mouth half full.

"Me? I pretty much did what I always do."

"So that means" Megumi looked thoughtful for a moment and then held up her hand, ticking off each point on her fingers. "Drinking, gambling, fighting, and freeloading?" Sano glared at her as she did her trademark laugh.

"And what about you, Fox?"

"Well, I've been working here in Aizu at a clinic."

"Is that where you met the geek?" Megumi's eyes darkened a moment. Sano knew he was treading on thin ice.

"Yes, that is where I met Seki, if that's who you're referring to." A second later Seki walked into the room with his new pair of chopsticks. He seemed oblivious to the tension in the room. He sat down next to Megumi and immediately started eating.

"Wow Megumi, this is delicious." He quickly finished his bowl. "May I have some more?" Megumi was scooping him another bowl of rice when a loud crack of thunder made them all jump.

"That sounded close!" Seki commented. There was concern in his voice. A second crack and a loud crashing noise came shortly after. Seki jumped to his feet and ran out of the dining room. A moment later he was screaming for help. Sano bolted to his feet without thinking and ran off in search of Seki. Megumi was only a moment behind.

Sano didn't have to look hard to find the problem. Wind and rain blew in from one of the doors and the smell of smoke hit his nostrils. He charged into the room and found Seki standing by a large hole in the wall and ceiling of the room. A burning tree protruded into the room and the fire was spreading. Seki beat at the flames with his shirt but the fire was still spreading rapidly. It raced up the wall and lit the roof and ceiling on fire. The flames roared and smoke billowed and the section of the roof above Seki cracked threateningly. Sano rushed toward him and knocked him out of the way as a portion of the burning ceiling collapsed. Seki hit the ground and started coughing; the smoke was getting dangerously thick.

"Seki! Sanosuke!" Megumi called into the room but she didn't dare enter. She couldn't see through the smoke but she could hear Seki coughing.

"We're alright! Don't come in here!" Sano called out as he helped Seki to his feet. He turned to the older man. "Go get Megumi out of here."

"But what are you going to do? You can't fight this fire by yourself!" Sano grinned confidently.

"Just go and get some help. I'll handle this." He shoved Seki toward the doorway. A moment later he heard Megumi yelling his name and then Seki told her to follow him. As soon as Sano knew they were out of the way he turned and charged the burning wall with his right fist pulled back. Sano was acutely aware of the flames that licked up around him as he punched the wall, but he knew he was moving fast enough that it wouldn't really matter. A split second later the burning wall exploded outward in a great fiery explosion. The burning tree flew back away from the house and landed harmlessly in the yard. The entire wall was lying in little broken pieces in the yard as well. Sano looked up at the burning ceiling. He pulled back his fist again and jumped into the air. His fist connected with the ceiling and sent the flaming wreckage flying up into the rainy night sky. By the time it fell back to the earth, it was only charred bits of shrapnel. The house was no longer on fire. It may have been missing the walls and ceiling of an entire room but it was an acceptable loss in Sanosuke's mind.

By the time Megumi and Seki returned with a large group of their neighbors the fire was completely gone. Sano stood in the yard looking up into the rainy night sky with his hands in his pockets.

~//~

"You were lucky."

"It wasn't luck." Sano watched Megumi dab at his arm with some cleansing solution. He winced as the liquid caused his small burn to sting painfully.

"What would make you do something so foolish?" Megumi concentrated on her task. She didn't meet his gaze once.

"It worked didn't it? If you're just mad cause I destroyed one of your rooms then I think you're the one being stupid." Sano growled. Megumi sighed and finished wrapping a clean bandage around his arm.

"No, the room doesn't matter. And what I meant to say is" Megumi stared down at Sano's bandaged arm. "Thank you. You saved the house and more importantly, you saved Seki's life. I don't know what I would have done if If something had happened to him." Her voice quavered slightly. Sano worked his jaw in silence for a moment.

"Your welcome."

~//~

"You really don't have to help." Seki unloaded a few boards of wood from a small wagon and piled it neatly on the ground. "You've done more than enough to help us already."

"I've got nothin' better to do." In one trip Sano unloaded the rest of the building materials. He dumped them unceremoniously on the floor.   
"Well then" Seki bowed his head low. "Thank you very much."

A few hours later, Sano was perched up on the damaged roof nailing down the new support beams. He hummed and whistled to himself absently as his hammer flew. Below, Seki was having a significantly less enjoying experience.

"Sagara-san?" Seki sounded confused.

"I told you to call me Sano."

"Ehh, S-Sanosuke-san, I can't seem to get this board to stay in place. I, I was wondering what I'm doing wrong." Sano rolled his eyes. The man may have been a doctor, but he was no genius. Sano walked to the edge of the roof and peered down at him. He was explaining to Seki the fundamentals of building when Megumi came out onto the porch with their lunch. She stood for a long moment watching Sano instruct Seki before she called out to them.

"Lunch is ready you two. Take a break and eat something." Sano looked at her and smiled before he hopped off the roof. He didn't just hop off the roof. Instead, he did a mid-air summersault and landed with perfect balance and precision. Seki was impressed but Megumi only rolled her eyes. "Save your energy for the job, rooster-head."

After a quick lunch Sano and Seki went back to work. Seki looked confused as he continued trying to repair the wall. Sano sighed and walked over to him. "Here, I'll help you with the wall for a bit." Seki smiled at him happily.

"Thank you Sanosuke-san!" Sano held the beams while Seki nailed them and their supports together. As Seki hammered away, Sano watched Megumi sweep the front porch. Every now and then she would steal a glance in their direction but she always looked away when she caught Sano's gaze. Sano sighed for the hundredth time that day.

"Is there something wrong Sanosuke-san?"

"No. Why do you ask?"

"I don't know. It's just that you seem rather preoccupied." Sano only grunted in response. He continued to watch as Megumi walked back and forth, sweeping. Seki sensed that Sano was watching something intently and he paused a moment to figure out what it was. When he saw Megumi working he smiled. "Isn't she something else?" Sano blinked and looked at Seki blankly.

"Who? Fox lady?" Seki laughed easily.

"Yes, of course. Megumi is really wonderful don't you think?" Sano grunted again and the two were silent a moment watching Megumi sweep.

"So you two pretty happy together?" Sano did his best to sound uninterested.

"I'd like to think so." Seki paused a long moment and then turned to Sano with a knowing smile. "Sometimes it's hard to tell what's going on in that head of hers though."

"You can say that again." Sano mumbled.

"So were you two good friends?" Sano's eyebrows rose slightly.

"I guess you could say that. I mean she helped me out a lot with her medical skills and stuff. She was always there telling me when I was doing something wrong." Sano smiled wistfully.

"Did you ever want to date her or anything?" Seki seemed quite curious. He looked at Sano intently and Sano felt his face reddening ever so slightly under the scrutiny.

"N-no Not really. She's not my type I guess. I mean I guess I'm really not her type more than anything. Ya know? There's not much someone like me could ever offer her. So I kept my distance, didn't think about it at all. And she was always hanging all over my friend so I didn't want to get in the way."

"So you 'were' interested?"

"Um no, I didn't mean it that way. I was just a punk. Still am really." _And she's a beautiful, intelligent, amazing woman_ "People like me don't think about that sort of thing." Seki seemed to think about his comment for a minute. He looked at Sano thoughtfully and then he absentmindedly stooped down and picked up another nail. As Seki resumed working Sano continued to hold and steady the boards. The entire time he found his gaze riveted to Megumi.

"ITAI!" Sano yelped and pulled his hand to his body protectively. The fingers on his left hand were throbbing painfully from a blow from Seki's hammer.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry Sanosuke-san!" Seki dropped the hammer and reached out unconsciously to inspect the damage. "I wasn't paying attention, I think I must have slipped!"

"It's nothing. Forget it." Sano clenched his left hand with his right and pulled it away from Seki.

"Are you ok?"

"Yeah I'm fine. You just surprised me that's all!" A small trickle of blood seeped between Sano's fingers.

"Sanosuke-san, you're bleeding! I'm so sorry! Please let me take a look at it."

Out of nowhere, Megumi appeared and grabbed Sanosuke's ear. "I'll clean him up Seki. You have to be assertive with this one."

"Itai!!" Megumi pulled Sano off into the house by his ear. "Leggo Fox!" Once they were inside Megumi released Sano's ear and pointed to a stool.

"Have a seat." It wasn't an invitation. She walked over to a cabinet and started removing bandages and cleansing liquids. Sano plopped down on the stool, he knew from experience not to argue with her. "Let me see your hand." Megumi place her supplies on a small table next to her stool. Sano held his hand out obediently and Megumi quickly inspected it with her well-trained eyes. "Hmph." One of Sano's fingernails was cracked and bleeding. It looked painful but it was hardly a serious emergency. Megumi fixed him with a wry look. Sano shrugged his shoulders in annoyance.

"I said it was nothing."

"Well, we can't have you bleeding all over the place. What would that say about our professional skills? But you know" Megumi's voice became more serious. "This has to be the smallest injury I've ever patched up on you." Sano could tell Megumi was thinking back to all the countless times he'd wandered into her office bleeding or broken. A small smile turned the corners of her mouth. She'd always patched him up. His only payment had been dealing with her questions and insults. _Pretty much a fair trade really._ Sano knew he was wrong the minute the thought popped into his head. She'd spent her time and energy helping him out and never asked anything in return. _Why did she do that for me?_ _I was just an ex-gangster who didn't know how to stay out of trouble._ The question suddenly burned in his mind.

"Megumi" She looked up from his hand in surprise. He hardly ever called her by name. His tone was serious. His voice was uncharacteristically gentle. "I need to know something."

She blinked in surprise. "What?" She seemed afraid of what he might ask her.

"Why do you always help me out?" The momentary look of fear vanished.

"Because you're always in trouble. It's a doctor's job to take care of people, after all."

"But it's different between you and me." Megumi raised an eyebrow.

"What makes you say that? I don't think there's anything different in the way I treat you." Megumi busied herself with cleaning Sano's finger.

"Megumi" Sano reached out and took her hand in his, forcing her to pay attention to him. She almost jumped but Sano ignored her reaction. "Five years ago I was a fool. I can't really say I'm much smarter now, but I do notice things a lot more than I did before. That's one thing my world travels taught me And well, in the last five years I thought a lot about the time I spent with you and Kenshin and Jochan and everyone" There was a slight pause.

"I don't understand. What are you trying to say rooster-head?"

"I guess, I mean I thought about YOU a lot and I was wondering if you ever thought about me?" It was hard to come out and admit things, especially to her. As he said it Sano realized how much time he had spent thinking about her.

Megumi was suddenly very interested in Sano's hand. She looked like she didn't even hear what he'd said. After a brief moment she wrenched her hand away from his and then grabbed his right hand, inspecting it. She turned it over roughly and then looked up at Sano with wide eyes.

"What is this??"

"What are you talking about?" Sano asked in confusion. _So much for that conversation._ She grabbed his left hand and put both his hands beside each other comparing them. Sano's right hand was misaligned and heavily scarred. The bones had apparently healed poorly. Suddenly, Megumi looked furious.

"You wasted all my work! Did you do that Futae thingy again and break your hand?" Megumi couldn't help but yell at him. Sano pulled his hands away from her and yelled back.

"Come on, I've been gone for years! What do you think?"

"Why didn't you have someone fix this up before it healed wrong??"

"I was in the middle of the Arabian desert!!"

"What were you doing in the middle of a desert with an untreated broken hand???"

"I GOT IN A FIGHT AND GOT LOST, OK???" The shouting match had progressed so that when Sano finished it still seemed to be echoing down the hallway. Megumi sighed and took his right hand in hers once again. She turned it over gently and inspected it again.

"Well, the good news is I think I can fix it."

------------------------

Megumi's got a boyfriend?? It's not totally unexpected, I suppose. Not that that will make it any easier for Sano to deal with the fact. But Megumi's acting kind of strange. Read on to find out what's really going on! (don't quit now, read the next chapter!) 


	10. Chapter 9: Naked Heart

Untitled Document 

Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

-----------------------

**Chapter 9: Naked Heart**

"So you really think you can fix my hand?" Sano took another good look at his hand as Megumi led him to one of the rooms of the Aizu Clinic. He hadn't realized how messed up it actually was. During his travels he'd used the Futae no Kiwami on more than one occasion and his hand had never gotten time to recover. After a while, it had healed enough so that it didn't bleed every time he did the Futae no Kiwami and that was about all Sanosuke cared about. _But now that I'm looking at it, it does sort of look wrong and every now and then I guess it does get kinda sore._

"We'll know in a minute." Megumi showed him to a seat and busily set up things for the procedure. She handed Sano a small piece of wood. "Put this in your mouth and bite down." Sano took it in his left hand as Megumi strapped down his right. He wasn't quite sure how it was going to help straighten out his hand but he put it in his mouth like she told him. Two distinct cracking noises broke the silence at the Aizu Clinic. Sano was howling in pain though it was mostly muffled by the piece of cracked wood in his mouth. Megumi inspected her handiwork. The bones had broken cleanly. "Now to set the bones." She commented more to herself than Sano. A moment later there was a third and fourth crack.

~//~

Sanosuke stared bleakly at his right hand. It was heavily bandaged and completely immobilized. Pain shot up his arm in time with his heartbeat. It hurt almost as bad as the first time he'd shattered it. Of course, the first time he had done it he'd had adrenaline coursing through his veins so that the pain wasn't so noticeable, not to mention he'd been knocked unconscious shortly thereafter. The situation had been more pressing at the time as well. Now it was all he had to think about. That, and the fact that Megumi seemed to be enjoying watching him suffer.

"Itai"A bead of sweat traced down the side of his face as he muttered weakly.

"Oh stop complaining." Sano turned angrily to face the vixen who had her back to him as she mixed something in a cup.

"You could have at least warned me!"

"Then you wouldn't have let me do what needed to be done."

"You're darn right! What kind of a stupid thing is it to break someone's hand to fix it??"

"Rooster-head, I don't have time for this." Megumi walked over to him and handed him an herbal concoction. "Drink this. It will help to ease some of the pain." Sano grudgingly took the cup and inspected it. It smelled awful. Sano whimpered and looked up at Megumi pleadingly. She, in turn, only looked more frustrated.

A knock at the door drew Megumi's attention away from Sano. "Yes? Who is it?" One of the assistants opened the sliding door and bowed his head slightly.

"I'm sorry to disturb you but Takani-sensei could use your help with an emergency case that just came in."

"I'm on my way." The assistant hurried off down the hall as Megumi turned back to Sanosuke. "You stay put and rest. I'll be back to check on you as soon as I can." Before Sano could complain any further she left the room. Sano drank the painkiller and lay back on the small cot, staring up at the ceiling of the clinic. He slowly closed his eyes and was about to drift off to sleep when realization hit.

"TAKANI-SENSEI???" Sano sat up bolt right in surprise. He hopped off the hospital bed and tucked his green hospital yukata around his waist as he hurried out of the room. He grabbed the first person he passed in the hallway. "Where's Takani-sensei?" His frantic actions scared the assistant but the man managed to point toward the end of the hallway.

"They're both down in the emergency room." Sano let go of his shirt and headed in the direction the man had indicated. "Wait, you shouldn't go down there!" Sano ignored the comment and marched faster. _THEY??_ When he reached the end of the hallway he slid the door open. Megumi and Seki were busy helping a heavily bleeding patient. Neither of them looked back when the door opened.

"Takani-sensei?" Sano asked quietly.

"What is it?" Seki responded without turning to look. Both he and Megumi were too wrapped up in their work to pay attention to someone interrupting them. Sano paused a long moment as realization and understanding hit.

"It's nothing, sorry." Sano closed the door silently.

Before he knew what had happened, Sano found himself back in his little room at the clinic. He grabbed his tattered pants and changed out of the hospital gown, tossing it angrily onto the bed. _She lied to me Seki's not her boyfriend He's gotta be her brother or somethingWHY would she tell me that?? Does she hate me that much? Does she not trust me THAT much?? She made me think that he was her boyfriend and I BELIEVED her and I had just realized how much she cared for him. I was just going to give up and walk away. That must be what she wants she just wants me to leave. I am such an idiot_ Sano clenched his right fist in anger, sending a jolt of pain up his arm.

"Why did I come to Aizu?" Sano turned and walked out of the little room and then out of the clinic without looking back.

~//~

"You didn't see him leave?" Megumi leaned over and got in the face of the clinic's attendant.

"No I'm sorry. He must have slipped by while I wasn't looking."

"Isn't it your job to keep an eye on things?"

"I said I'm sorry. It won't happen again." Megumi stood up and sighed in frustration. There was nothing more she could get out of the attendant.

"You ready to go home?" Seki had changed into his normal clothes and he stood waiting for Megumi.

"I guess so There's nothing more I can do here to look for that stupid rooster-head."

"I bet he just got tired of waiting for us. Who could have guessed that we'd have to stay so late? He probably headed back to the house. Let's go and see if he's there, alright?" Megumi sighed in resignation.

"You're right." The two walked out of the clinic and headed down the darkened streets. "I just hope he didn't go get himself into trouble. He needed to be resting after having his hand broken again."

"Relax, Sanosuke-san seems like a very capable person. I'm sure he's alright." Seki was silent a moment while a small smile started turning up the corners of his mouth. He watched Megumi as they walked and he could see the look of concern on her face. "You really do care about that 'rooster-head' don't you?"

"Oh shut up Seki." Megumi looked at her brother and saw the teasing expression on his face. "He's just a complete idiot that's all." She quickly tried to justify her reaction. "I can't help but worry about people who get into so much trouble."

"Oh stop lying Megumi-chan. Are you forgetting that I'm your big brother and I can read you like a book?" Megumi blinked and stared at her brother who was grinning like a schoolboy. "It is so obvious that you care about him." Megumi clenched her fists at her sides.

"Seki"

"I mean... you'd have to be blind not to see it."

"SEKI" One of her eyebrows twitched.

"The fact that HE hasn't noticed is what's really got me going." Seki laughed once.

"SEKI!" Her fists started shaking.

"I think its sooooo cute!" His eyes got all sparkly and he held his hands up to his face mockingly.

"That's IT!" Megumi pounced on Seki and pummeled him with her fists. He laughed and picked her up, throwing her over his shoulders. "Put me down Seki!" Megumi pounded harmlessly on his back and couldn't help but laugh as Seki marched down the streets. "Seki this isn't the way to act in public!"

"Oh come on, we're going out right? Isn't this how a loving couple treats each other?" He laughed loud and easily. "Oh and that's another thing!" He stopped and plopped her down on her feet. "We're not going to trick him anymore. I'm done pretending to be anything other than you're big brother who just happens to care greatly about your happiness!"

"Pretending?" Megumi pushed him playfully. "Is that all it is?"

"Of course! You don't think I REALLY care about your happiness do you?" He could barely say it with a straight face. Megumi pushed him again and he picked her up throwing her over his shoulders a second time. Their laughter echoed down the dark streets and alleys.

"Are you going to put me down anytime soon?" Megumi poked Seki in the back as he carried her through the streets. "I'm not a little girl anymore. You're going to pull a muscle if you keep this up and then I'm going to have to take care of all the work at the clinic!" Seki stopped abruptly with a sharp intake of breath. "See I told you you'd pull a muscle."

"Sanosuke-san!" Seki's voice wavered. Megumi tried to squirm around and see what was going on. After a moment, Seki lowered her to the ground. Megumi turned and saw Sano standing in the street. His face was lowered toward the ground so that the shadows hid it from view. A large jug of sake dangled by a rope from his left hand. Blood soaked through the bandages on his right hand.

"Sano!?" He didn't respond or look up at them. Both she and Seki could feel that there was something terribly wrong. Megumi took a tentative step toward him and as she did Sano finally looked up at her. His eyes were so cold that they stopped Megumi in her tracks.

"Why Megumi?" He sounded like he was in pain.

"WhaWhat are you talking about Sano?" Megumi felt frozen in place. She couldn't make a move toward him but instead Sano took a staggering step toward her.

"Why did you LIE TO ME?" His movements and speech showed that he was drunk. He angrily threw the jug of sake against the wall next to him, shattering it and wasting what little was left of the sake.

"I don't know what you're talking about Sano please calm down." Megumi tried to keep her fear from her voice.

"Don't tell me what to do!" He continued advancing toward her on unsteady legs. "And stop lying to me!" Sano clenched his fists at his sides. Seki stepped between Megumi and Sano, holding out his hands calmly.

"Sagara-san, we can explain. Please just listen." Sano continued advancing, oblivious to Seki.

"Do you know why I came to Aizu?" He kept his eyes locked on Megumi's.

"Sagara-san, please." Seki put his hands out and tried to stop Sano from getting any closer to Megumi. Sano casually pushed Seki out of the way and sent him stumbling to the ground next to one of the walls lining the street. Megumi called out her brother's name, but Sano ignored her.

"I came to see YOU!" Sano was getting dangerously close to Megumi and in response she began to back away. "For five years I thought about you. I wondered about you. I wondered how you felt about me And now I know the truth." Megumi backed up against a wall and suddenly the world seemed too small. "I'm nothing to you." Sano put his hands on the wall on each side of her head, leaning toward her. "I'm just a big, dumb, rooster-head" His breath reeked of sake as he stared right into her eyes. "You've been messing with me ever since I got here. You didn't care if you hurt me or not" Megumi couldn't look away and as she stared back at him she noticed a single tear escape the corner of his eye and trace down his cheek. In an instant, Sano wasn't menacing anymore. He was more vulnerable than Megumi had ever seen him in her life.

"Sanosuke" Megumi spoke softly.

"Shut up" There was no anger left in his voice as he responded listlessly. Sano wiped the tear from his face in disgust. A smear of blood replaced it as he wiped the tear away with the back of his right hand.

"Sano, you're hand"

"I said shut up. Stop pretending to care. There's only one thing I want from you and then I'm outta here." Without another word he grabbed her shoulders and pulled her close. He turned her face up to his and slowly brought his face close to hers. As their lips were about to meet Megumi pulled away forcefully and slapped her hand across his face. Sano staggered back and reached his hand up to his stinging cheek, staring wide-eyed.

"Snap out of it rooster-head! You're drunk! You're not acting like yourself." Megumi did her best to act firm and in control. Sano was too stunned and intoxicated to notice how close she was to tears.

"Myself?" Sano pulled his hand up and covered most of his face. He eyed her through the spaces between his fingers, regarding her in silence for a moment. Then, he laughed. It was anything but a happy sound. He dropped his hand from his face and glared at her angrily. "What do you know about ME!??" Turning on his heels he rushed toward the stone wall behind him. A quick punch with his right fist pulverized a large portion of the wall. Blood spurted from his hand.

"Sanosuke stop it!" Megumi rushed toward him as he prepared to deliver a second blow to another section of the wall. She latched her arms around his right arm and held on tight, trying to keep him from swinging. Sano stopped and stared at her as tears began to form in her eyes. "Baka! Sano you idiot" Tears flowed down Megumi's cheeks and she shook imperceptibly. Sano lowered his arm and turned to face her. "Stop it why are you so stupid?"

"Me" Sano slowly began to put his arms around her, hoping it might comfort her. He was suddenly very confused to find her crying. Once again, she pushed him away. Her eyes glistened from the tears and the moonlight.

"Don't! I don't want you to comfort me You're right Sano I did lie to you. I did it on purpose. Do you want to know the truth? Do you have any idea WHY I would want to lie to you about having a boyfriend?"

"Because you wanted me to leave"

"You're right" Sano's heart skipped a beat. Megumi was completely serious. She tried to wipe the tears from her face but they were quickly replaced. Sano regarded her in silence and then without a word he turned away from her and began to walk down the dark alley.   
"Wait Sano there's more. I should have told you these things before and now I can only ask that you'll hear me out." Sano didn't turn around but he did stop. He casually put his hands in his pockets.

"So talk Fox"

"Five years ago, I left Tokyo and came to Aizu do you know why?" Sano paused a long moment and didn't turn to face her as he finally answered.

"To look for your family and because you had an opportunity to work helping people out here in Aizu."

"Those are both part of the reason but there is more to it than that. In truth I never really expected to be reunited with my family and there was always plenty of work to do in Tokyo. The real reason I left is because of you." There was another long painful pause.

"Why Megumi what did I do?"

"Sagara Sanosuke I don't know how you manage it, but you really are a complete idiot." Sano clenched his fists in his pockets and the muscles in his shoulders and neck bunched in frustration.

"You're not telling me anything I don't know. I'm stupid and you hate me I'm out of here." He took one step before her voice stopped him again.

"You're wrong. Sanosuke I loved you!" Sano's mouth dropped open and a blank expression came to his face, but Megumi couldn't see it. "Ever since it became obvious that Ken-san and Kaoru were in love I wasn't really interested in him. I did that to hide my true feelings about you. I didn't want you or the others to know how I felt. Once I knew that Kaoru and Kenshin would be settling down I thought things would become more difficult to hide. I had a feeling that eventually people would start trying to get you and I together But I could tell you didn't care about me. And there was no way in hell I was going to let you know how I felt. You, an ignorant, violent, lazy, unemployed ex-gangster!" Megumi's words cut Sano to the core. He would have started walking but he needed to hear what else she had to say. Megumi continued, unaware of the conflict raging in Sano's mind. "I had no idea why I cared about you as much as I did. What could you possibly have offered me? I needed a real man who could provide for me and take care of me not you and yet my feelings were unshakable. I thought by going to Aizu I could put it all behind me. But secretly, I hoped that you would come and visit me and then I hoped that you would begin to care about me as much as I cared about you. But what did you do? YOU left Japan! You ran away from all of us!" Sano heard the pain in her voice and inwardly cursed himself for not considering how his departure would affect his friend. "For years I hoped every day to find you at my house and then finally after five years, I figured you were never coming back. A part of me was glad. I slowly got over you and JUST when I had overcome my feelings, you came BACK! How dare you" Megumi's shoulders shook while a fresh wave of tears streamed down her cheeks. "How dare you come back when I was ready to move on? I was going to start my life again I was going to find a respectable man to marry and I was going to settle down How dare you come back?" Megumi covered her face with her hands and slumped against the wall.

"I'm sorry I came back. But don't worry, I'll be leaving now."

"No Sano you can't leave now. At least let me take a look at your hand"

"It doesn't hurt. What you've told me hurts much worse. I thought I was strong, but you've hurt me Megumi. And now I know that you've been equally hurt by me. I did care about you. I cared so much about you that it hurt inside." It was true, Sano realized it the minute he said it. "I knew you were too good for me and I never wanted to bother you with my feelings. I've never had anything to offer you so I'll be leaving now. I'm sorry and goodbye." He didn't turn to look at her even once as he walked off into the dark alone. He couldn't turn around because then she would have seen his tears. He hadn't cried since Captain Sagara had died and as long as she didn't see, no one would ever know.

~//~

"I made you breakfast." Seki placed the tray beside Megumi's futon. She didn't even look at him. "Please eat something Megumi-chan." Seki instantly brightened up and did his best imitation of her. "It's a fundamental principle of good health!" Megumi didn't respond to his little joke. Seki sighed. "Look Megumi I know that you must feel terrible right now but you need to snap out of it quickly. There's still time. I know that Sanosuke-san will be going back to Tokyo and I'm sure you can catch up with him there."

"Please leave me alone." Her voice was so quiet Seki almost didn't hear her.

"Megumi, I don't want to see you like this. You and I both know that you still love him. You may think it's foolish to feel that way, but a person's heart isn't a machine to be turned off or on. We don't get to choose who we love. I know that I'm not really the person to be offering you advice in this area but I want you to be happy and I think your happiness will depend on whether you get out of this bed, right now, and go to Tokyo. You love him, and I know that he loves you. Just forget about the pain. There's nothing stopping the two of you from working everything out. He needs you as much as you need him"

"Please Seki just leave me alone for a while." Seki sighed and rose to his feet slowly. He walked over to one of Megumi's closets, opened it up, and removed a wrapped bundle. He set the bundle down next to the tray with her food.

"When you go, don't forget to take this." Seki walked from the room and stood in the hallway. "Don't worry about the clinic. I'll take care of everything while you're away." He slid the door shut and Megumi heard his soft footsteps as he walked away.

"I can't go" Megumi rolled over on her other side and pulled her sheets close to her face. "I can't."

------------------------

Megumi pulls a Kaoru? *gasp* Sano took off by himself? Are those two ever going to work things out? Find out in the next chapter!

Also, Aoshi and Misao make their big debut! Now I KNOW you want to read the next chapter! *wink* 


	11. Chapter 10: Fly Like the Wind

Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

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**Chapter 10: Fly Like the Wind**

Shinomori Aoshi walked into the Aoiya with some interesting news. He was looking for Misao so he could let her know what he had just found out but she was the one to find him. She jumped out of one of the rooms as he walked by.

"Aoshi-sama! Guess what I just got in the mail!" He looked her over. She was absolutely ecstatic. A teeny weenie smile turned the corners of his mouth.

"Is it possibly a letter from Tokyo inviting us to come over because Sagara Sanosuke has returned from his world travels?" His voice was totally serious as usual.

"Ack! How did you know? I just opened this thing!" The 'smile' left the corners of his lips as he remembered the information he had just discovered.

"Apparently the Keishichou is already aware of his return. It seems they are hunting him down."

"Nani??" Misao looked shocked. "What do they want with that rooster-head?"

"That's what we need to find out." Misao got a serious look on her face and nodded at him.

"Alright, Let's go." Misao and Aoshi walked out of the Aoiya ready for a little information gathering. About half an hour later they were quietly going through top-secret files down at the Kyoto Police Headquarters. Misao silently handed Aoshi a sheet of paper and gave him the secret "I found what we're looking for" nod. Aoshi read it over quickly and handed it back to Misao. She slid the sheet back into its file and put the file back in its place. The two snuck back out of the headquarters and were safely back at the Aoiya another half hour later.

"That's terribly interesting." Misao commented as the two of them sat down to some afternoon tea. Aoshi nodded his agreement. Misao looked up at him quietly sipping his tea. "To Tokyo then?" He set down his cup.

"To Tokyo." He agreed. In the next fifteen minutes the two of them packed, said goodbye to Okina and the rest of the Oniwabanshu, and boarded a train bound for Tokyo.

  
~//~

  
It was all a hazy memory but Sano was sure it had happened. _I blew it_. Sano kicked a rock in frustration. The road from Aizu to Tokyo seemed much longer now that he wasn't in a hurry to get anywhere. He wasn't entirely sure how long he'd been walking but he knew at least one day had come and gone. He didn't care.

Sanosuke pulled his right hand out of his pocket and inspected it. The blood caked bandages were proof enough that he'd done and said all those terrible things to Megumi. And in turn, he knew that she had done and said all the terrible things to him. It was hard to admit defeat and just walk away. _But I was drunk enough and stupid enough to pull it off_.

Sano suddenly felt too weak to continue his pointless journey. He walked over to the side of the road and collapsed onto his back, staring up at the blue sky. His eyes closed and he might have fallen asleep but lately it had become so hard to tell if he was awake or just having a bad dream.

"Sanosuke? Are you alive?" Her voice was haunting him.

"Megumi I'm sorry. Please forgive me" His mumbled apology even seemed inadequate in his own ears.

"It's not your fault Sano. And I hope you don't blame me. I never imagined that you felt that way about me. We should have just talked it over but I was afraid to admit my feelings, and even more afraid at the thought of being rejected." _Megumi sure is a lot nicer in this dream._ Sano opened his eyes and sighed. A few clouds floated by overhead.

"I woke up. Too bad" Sano closed his eyes again, hoping to return to the caring Megumi of his dreams.

"Are you listening to me rooster-head?" His eyes shot open and he sat up in confusion. There she was, sitting on a log beside him.

"Megumi!?"

"Who did you think it was?"

"Megumi!!" Sano jumped to his feet ignoring her sarcastic comment. "What are you doing here?"

"Sitting on this log talking to you." She stood up and dusted off her kimono. Sano watched her in disbelief, expecting her to disappear at any moment. "Stop looking at me like that."

"You're really here aren't you?" He took a tentative step towards her. She raised an eyebrow quizzically.

"Yes, I'm really here. I came because I had to find you. I had to apologize. I've been so rude to you. Everything was a misunderstanding Sano. If the two of us had confronted each other five years ago, things would have worked out differently."

"But we didn't confront each other. You went to Aizu instead" Sano lowered his head sadly.

"And you left Japan. But we're both here now. Do you think maybe we could try again?" Sano's head shot up.

"Do you mean that?" Megumi nodded timidly. "You'd give me another chance?" Sano was beginning to become excited.

"As long as you give me another chance."

"But Megumi." Sano's shoulders slumped. "I haven't changed in the past five years. I have no place to call my own, no job, no stable lifestyle... I still get in trouble and I still owe money at the Akabeko! I don't want to hold you back. You need a man who can really provide for you." Megumi took a step toward him.

"Well, I thought about that Sano" She took another step toward him. "And I realized that you can't control how you feel." Her last step closed the distance between them. "The man I want is you." She put her hand behind his head and pulled his face down to hers, kissing him passionately. After they finally pulled apart Megumi smiled up at him. Her eyes were moist with happy tears. "And you know what else I realized?"

"What's that?" Sano stroked his hand gently across her face, removing the single tear that had escaped the corner of her eye.

"I'm a doctor. I can provide for us both."

  
~//~

  
"Stop laughing. I don't think it's funny!"

"But you should have seen the look on your face!" Megumi doubled over, clutching her stomach as she laughed uncontrollably.

"What kind of man would I be if I let you take care of me?" It took Megumi a moment to answer his question as she tried to keep herself from laughing.

"Kenshin?" She almost collapsed with another wave of laughter. Sano fought valiantly, but he couldn't keep himself from chuckling. "And besides rooster-head, it never bothered you before!" It seemed her fox ears had become a permanent fixture.   
"Alright you." Sano scooped her up in his arms and headed toward the carriage Megumi had borrowed from one of Seki's friends. She was too weak with laughter to argue. "By the way fox, do you have any food? It feels like it's been days since I ate anything."

"It has been days, rooster-head!"

"Well that explains it." He set her down beside the carriage. Megumi opened the carriage door and pulled out a container filled with rice balls. She handed them to Sano and then grabbed a wrapped bundle.

"And by the way, this is for you."

"What is it?" Sano set the tray of rice balls down and took the bundle, inspecting it curiously.

"Just open it." Sano eyed her curiously before he sat cross-legged on the ground setting the bundle in front of him so he could open it with his good hand. What he saw almost made his eyes pop out of his head.

"My old shirt!!" He tenderly pulled out a white shirt with black lining. "It's all new looking and stuff!" Megumi smacked him.  
"It's not the same shirt, moron."

"It looks like my old shirt." He commented as he flipped it over to take a look at the back. The character for evil was sewn in all its glory. Sanosuke grinned as he looked down on his trademark. "Where'd you get this?"

"You wanted to know if I ever thought about you? I made this a few years ago I knew if you ever did wandered into my backyard, you'd probably have worn the shirt right off of your back."

"Ooooooooh! Megumi!" He sounded absolutely ecstatic. He jumped to his feet and in one smooth motion he slid into the shirt and then stood there for a minute admiring how well it fit and looked. He looked down and realized that there was a matching pair of white drawstring pants to go with it. "Pants!" His current excitement wasn't lending itself well to intelligent comments. He picked them up and held them out for inspection. Without thinking he quickly undid the strings holding up his old pair of pants. It took them both a minute to realize that they were both in plain sight of each other. Megumi may have seen plenty of naked men in her time as a doctor, but the idea of Sano standing right next to her wearing next to nothing cause a slight blush to creep to her face. Sano grinned and started taking them off anyways. When she realized he was serious she quickly turned around muttering under her breath about Sano's lack of manners. Sano whipped his pants off and tossed them in Megumi's direction, managing to drape them right over her head. She cried out in surprise.

"Yuck! These things are filthy!" She turned around and threw them at his face. Megumi was just a second too late to get a free show. Sano had his new pants up and had just finished tying them. His old pair of pants was wrapped around his head and shoulders from Megumi's well aimed throw. He removed them from his head with a flourish and stood posing in his brand new yet all too familiar outfit.

"Well, how do I look?" He asked her with a disarming grin.

"Cleaner at least." Megumi placed her hands on her hips and put on her best unimpressed look. Sanosuke laughed, fully aware that he looked good.

"This is great!" He was practically jumping for joy. "I feel like running around or going and getting in a fight or something! It feels so good!!" He ran up to her and gave her a big childish hug. "You don't know how much this means to me!"

"Oh I think I have a small idea. Or else, I never would have made it in the first place."

  
~//~

  
"When do you think they're going to get here? They've all had plenty of time." Yahiko commented as he sat watching Kenshin hanging the laundry.

"It's hard to say, that it is." Kenshin replied as he draped a shirt over the line and straightened it out. "But my guess would be sometime soon." Not a moment later there was a knock at the entrance. Yahiko jumped to his feet and rushed toward the gate. Kenshin stopped what he was doing and hurried around to the front just a little behind him. The gate flew open a moment before Yahiko reached it. Misao and Aoshi walked in with bags slung over their shoulders.

"We're HERE!" Misao called out happily and loudly. Yahiko covered his ears in pain.

"Geeze, now that the whole neighborhood knows!" He yelled back at her. Misao was beaming and waving at Yahiko and Kenshin. Aoshi stood just a step or two behind her looking his usual serious self.

"Misao-dono, Aoshi, good to see you two." Kenshin said happily as he greeted their Kyoto friends.

"It's great to be able to come and visit again!" Misao said cheerily.

"There's only one problem." Aoshi commented seriously when Misao had finished speaking. Yahiko and Kenshin glanced at each other and raised their eyebrows. "It's about Sagara Sanosuke." He continued, his eyes searching the premises.

"What have you heard?" Kenshin asked, suddenly very serious. Misao and Yahiko both dropped their happy looks as well.

"So you know there's something going on?" Misao seemed surprised that Kenshin and Yahiko already had some information.

"Chou stopped by asking for Sano a few days ago. He wouldn't tell us what it was about. Do you two know something?" Kenshin looked at both Aoshi and Misao. Misao turned to Aoshi who nodded slowly.

"Perhaps we should head inside to discuss it?" He glanced around the open courtyard.

"Right." Kenshin led them toward the main house. Kaoru came outside carrying a broom as the four of them headed for the front porch.

"Misao! Aoshi! Hi you two! Glad you could make it!" Kaoru greeted them with a smile. Then she noticed all the serious looks on their faces. "Is there something wrong?"

"It's about Sano." Kenshin commented to her.

"Has something happened?" Kaoru's voice sounded very concerned.

"No. Not yet, at least. But Aoshi and Misao have some new information."

"We were just heading inside to discuss it." Misao told her. They all followed Kenshin inside and headed to a room where they could have some privacy. Kaoru closed the door behind them. Aoshi sat calmly and gave Kenshin a serious look as everyone took a seat on the floor.

"I was doing some routine investigation work when I discovered the first bit of information. It seems certain Keishichou agents were searching for Sagara Sanosuke. They were aware of his exact arrival date. The first notice I discovered was very brief only stating that he was back in the country and that he needed to be found and detained."

"I knew it. Chou was going to arrest him." Yahiko looked pissed. Aoshi turned and gave him a little look before he continued.

"That is initially what I believed so Misao and I went to verify. In the process we uncovered the rest of our information." Misao started looking a little excited. Yahiko couldn't tell if it was because Aoshi mentioned her name or because of the information they had uncovered.

"What did you find?" Kenshin asked Aoshi.

"The original orders were dated one week after the day you received the letter from Sagara. Apparently they know the exact content of the letter." Kaoru looked surprised.

"They're pretty sneaky aren't they? I'd like to know how they even knew about the letter!" Aoshi gave her a quiet look and then turned back to Kenshin.

"It seems they have had an operative in place assigned to keep an eye on your dojo from the time of the original order." This time everyone was surprised. Kenshin looked the most surprised of all. Yahiko stammered.

"It's been months since we got the letter." Kaoru turned to Yahiko.

"They've been spying on us for MONTHS?" Suddenly Kaoru was very angry. If any Keishichou agents had walked in the room at that moment they would have had to fear for their lives.

"There's more." Aoshi commented quietly. Kenshin had a look on concentration on his face as Yahiko and Kaoru turned back to Aoshi looking even more surprised.

"The orders originated from a Keishichou agent in Hokkaido."

"Hokkaido?" Yahiko and Kaoru asked at the same.

"I see." Kenshin said, his voice serious. Kaoru and Yahiko turned to look at him. Aoshi nodded at Kenshin, knowing that he had already figured out the next piece of information. As one the two men said the name.

"Saitoh Hajime." At the mention of Saitoh's name Yahiko and Kaoru's mouths dropped open. Misao just sat there with an uncharacteristically serious look on her face and her arms crossed in front of her chest.

"Then that means" Kenshin continued, trailing off as he put his thoughts together. Aoshi nodded at him again, realizing that Kenshin had put together another fact.

"Yes. She is the Keishichou agent that has been spying on you."

"She??" Kaoru asked. Yahiko didn't join Kaoru in the confusion the two had been sharing. A look of realization was plastered to his face.

"Fujita Tokio." Yahiko said her name in quiet shock. Aoshi and Kenshin turned and nodded at him.

"No way She was always so nice." Kaoru was in disbelief. "No way she would pretend to befriend us just so she could spy on us!"

"This all makes sense now. But there is still one thing I can't figure out." Kenshin said to Aoshi, seemingly ignoring Kaoru's outbreak. Aoshi raised an eyebrow, quietly urging Kenshin to ask his question. "What do they want with him?" Aoshi seemed to consider the question for a moment.

"We have no clue." Misao put in. Aoshi regarded her in silence for a moment while the others mulled over her comment.

"While we do not know what they want with Sagara exactly, we have come up with one idea that fits all the evidence." Aoshi continued after everyone had had a moment to think things through for themselves.

"We think they want his help with something." Misao commented after it seemed Aoshi was through. Yahiko nodded in agreement.

"Chou told us as much. He said he needed to talk to Sano and then he'd explain everything. At first I thought they just wanted to arrest him. But if you two think it's because they want his help, I'm more inclined to believe what Chou said."

"But can we really trust them?" Kaoru asked, looking at Kenshin and then at Aoshi. "What if they really are up to something bad and they just want to arrest Sanosuke?"

"Misao and I have a few leads we can check up here in Tokyo." Aoshi said as he rose to his feet.

"Right now?" Kaoru asked as Misao hopped up as well.

"Time is of the essence." Aoshi said with his usual serious look. Misao just nodded.

"You guys just got here! You sure you don't want to relax or get a bite to eat or something first?"

"No. Thank you for the offer Kaoru-san. We shall rest upon completing our objectives." Kaoru, Kenshin, and Yahiko all got to their feet. Kenshin gave Aoshi a nod.

"Alright then. Good luck."

"Hey wait a minute!" Yahiko said, punching one hand down on the other as if he had just thought of something great. "I bet Tokio-dono might have some information at her house. If you two are going to go sneaking around you might want to stop there and take a look. She'll be here to pick her son up from practice this afternoon and we can hold her here for dinner or something so you two can have time to check around."

"That could work." Misao said with a smile at Yahiko. She turned to give Aoshi a questioning look. He nodded his agreement.

"We'll go check our other leads first and then head to her house." Aoshi said.

"Great! I'll go get you her address." Yahiko bounded out of the room. Kaoru watched him go and then she turned to Kenshin.

"You sure it's alright if Aoshi and Misao take a look around Tokio-dono's house? I mean, what if she HASN'T been spying on us. It would be an invasion of privacy." Kenshin regarded her a moment and then smiled.

"I'm sure Tokio-dono has a good explanation for everything but if there is something going on it might be nice to know a little more about the situation. Besides, Aoshi and Misao are completely trustworthy and are not going to be disturbing anything." Misao smiled and nodded at Kaoru.

"Kenshin's right. We'll be real careful and Tokio-dono won't even know we were there." Yahiko came back in the room and handed Misao a little slip of paper.

"There ya go." He said with a smile. "Good luck!" Misao gave everyone a wave and then she and Aoshi quietly left the Kamiya Kasshin Dojo.

"I hope they'll be alright." Kaoru said as she, Kenshin, and Yahiko stood in thought.

"It's Aoshi and Misao. If there are two people in the world you don't have to worry about, it's them. Especially when they're together." Yahiko commented and Kenshin agreed with a nod.

"The person I'm really worried about right now is Sano." Kenshin said. "I don't think that Saitoh would have given orders to simply arrest him. That's not Saitoh's style or job. But if he's been ordered by someone in the government to arrest Sano then I believe that Saitoh will do all in his power to make sure the job is completed. But I truly think there is something else going on here, that I do."   


~//~  


"Do you think we'll be able to pull it off?" Kaoru sat down next to Kenshin on the porch. "What if we can't get Tokio-dono to stay?"

"I'm sure everything will be fine. How much longer till she'll be arriving to pick up her son?"

"About an hour." Kenshin turned in the general direction of the front gate. A small smile formed at the corners of his mouth.

"Well, I'm not sure if this is good timing, but it seems Sano's back." He got to his feet, dusting off his hakama.

"What?" Kaoru looked around and couldn't tell what her husband was talking about. "I don't see Sanosuke anywhere." A moment later they heard a carriage come to a stop out in the street. Kenshin was already halfway to the front gate. When he reached the entryway he opened the door and stood watching Sanosuke and Megumi unload her things from the carriage.

"Welcome back you two!" Sano turned and grinned at Kenshin.

"Oi Kenshin!" Kaoru rushed over to her husband's side and waved at the two of them.

"Did you two have a nice trip?" Sano and Megumi turned to each other, exchanging a private look that neither Kenshin nor Kaoru understood. Sano wiped the strange look off his face and turned back to his two friends.

"It was alright." He shrugged casually. Suddenly Kaoru blinked.

"Sanosuke? Where'd you get that shirt? I thought it fell apart?" Sano smiled broadly.

"Fox lady made it for me, isn't it great?" He held out his arms and turned around once, letting them admire it from all angles.

"Megumi did?" Kaoru turned to the lady doctor questioningly. In response, Megumi just flipped her hair over her shoulder casually.

"We can't have him running around half naked can we?" Kaoru and Kenshin smiled.

"Let me help you unload your things." Kenshin stepped forward and took one of Megumi's bags. Judging from all the luggage it was obvious that Megumi was planning on sticking around for an extended period of time.

"I got it Kenshin." Sano all but snatched the bag out of his friend's hand.

"Oro? I was just going to help."

"I can handle it." Kenshin blinked once in confusion and then he noticed something that clicked everything into perspective.

"Ok Sano." He placed a friendly hand on the tall man's shoulder as he turned to head back inside. "By the way" He spoke quietly so that neither Kaoru nor Megumi could hear him over their own conversation. "You've got a little lipstick on your cheek." Sano's eyes widened as he wiped at his face with the back of his sleeve.

"Thanks." Sano looked embarrassed. Kenshin gave him a thumbs up and then herded Megumi and Kaoru through the gate. Everyone stopped in surprise when they found Yahiko standing in the front yard in full kendo practice armor (minus the facemask).

"What are you guys DOING!?" He pointed his bokken angrily in their direction. "You gotta hide Sano and Megumi!"

"NANI?" Megumi and Sano couldn't hide their confusion. Yahiko ran over to them and grabbed Megumi by the wrist, leading her quickly toward the house.

"Oh that's right!" Kaoru looked around frantically. Kenshin put a hand on her shoulder calming her down.

"We'll take them to the spare room and have them wait in there until she and Tsuyoshi are gone."

"Ken-san what's going on?" Concern was etched on Megumi's face.

"Let's get you to one of the guest rooms, I'll explain then." Megumi turned to Sanosuke questioningly. He shrugged.

"I have no idea what they're talking about Fox." She her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Honest!"

"We just found out about it Megumi-dono. But let's wait to talk till we have a little more privacy." Kenshin entered one of the guest rooms and closed the door behind them. Sano dumped Megumi's things on the floor and then put his hands in his pockets casually.

"So what's up Kenshin? What's Yahiko yelling about?" Yahiko looked frustrated.

"You have no idea what's been going on since you left for Aizu! I could explain everything to you but I have to go back and teach my class or people will get suspicious!" He pointed his wooden sword threateningly at Sano. "Stay put, you got that?"

"I'll explain everything Yahiko. And don't worry, we'll keep them hidden." Yahiko nodded and marched out of the room.

"What's with him?"

"Do you remember Chou?"

"Yeah, that broom-head guy. What about him?" Sano blinked in confusion.

"He stopped by the day you left for Aizu. He was trying to track you down for the Keishichou. He wouldn't tell us what it was about, except that he said they needed your help with something." A look of concentration came over Sano's face.

"Aoshi and Misao got here today and they had uncovered some information too."

"Like what?" Megumi asked. She seemed overly curious.

"Apparently the order originated from Saitoh in Hokkaido." Sano's eyes widened.

"Saitoh?"

"Yes. He's been trying to track you down since we got your letter. He's had people spying on us waiting for you to get back it seems."

"Any idea what they want me for?" Sano asked. Megumi, Kenshin, and Kaoru could all tell he didn't like the way things were sounding.

"We don't know for sure but Aoshi and Misao are out checking up on things right now. They might find some more answers."

"You guys sure they're not just going to try and arrest me?" Sano gave them a questioning look. "Cause if they are, I'm not going to let them. I just got back to Japan and I didn't come here to get thrown in jail for the rest of my life or anything." His fists clenched and rose into the air threateningly. "If it comes to that I'd probably have to" Megumi reached up and rested a hand on his forearm pulling his fist down.

"It won't happen." Megumi tried to assure him. Kenshin and Kaoru both noticed a strange look on Megumi's face. She seemed openly concerned for Sano. Kaoru turned to her husband and he just smiled and nodded letting his wife know that he'd noticed it to.

"I'm sure there is a good explanation for whatever is going on Sano." Kenshin said interrupting Megumi and Sano, as they were about to stare deeply into each other's eyes. Sano's head snapped up and met Kenshin's gaze as his mind went back on track. "We just need to figure it out. Aoshi and Misao are checking around and I'm sure they'll uncover something new. We also have a small part to play." Kenshin glanced at Kaoru. Kaoru nodded and explained.

"The agent that's been watching the dojo is none other than Saitoh's wife, Tokio."

"WHAT? That harmless looking woman is a Keishichou agent?" Kaoru and Kenshin nodded.

"You need to be quiet Sanosuke." Kaoru put her finger to her lips. "Someone might be out there spying on us right now."

"So what are you going to do about Saitoh's wife?" Sanosuke continued quietly.

"Aoshi and Misao are going to go through her house when she comes over here to pick up her son. We're going to try and keep Tokio-dono here for dinner so they have more time. You two will need to stay quiet and hidden during that time." Kenshin explained.

"We can do that." Sanosuke said and turned to Megumi with a wink. "But if you want me and Fox Lady to hide we better get some food now. I'm hungry."

"You're not concerned at all are you?" Megumi turned and shot Sano a dirty look. Sano shook his head and shrugged slightly.

"Not really. I'm definitely more concerned about getting some food anyway. I might worry about all this later." The tone of his voice indicated that he probably wouldn't.

"Alright Sano. We'll bring you some food and for now you two just stay put."

"I'm still not sure why I have to hide with this idiot." Megumi commented with a sly look on her face. Sano gave her an odd look while Kenshin explained.

"It's quite possible that Tokio-dono would recognize you or realize that you were the one that Sano left to go get. If she sees you she'll realize that Sano must be back as well."

"Hmmm well I guess it should be alright." She gave Sano a look. A tiny grin crept up at one corner of his mouth.

"I guess I'LL survive SOMEHOW." He commented rudely. Megumi smacked him.

"Oh like I want to be stuck in here with you or something!" The two looked like they were about to start yelling at each other so Kenshin quickly interceded.

"You should be quite, that you should. Please try to keep it down so that no one hears you."

"I'll be good Ken-san." Megumi promised him. "But I can't make any promises for this rooster-head." She indicated Sano with her thumb.

"Hey don't worry about me Kenshin. I can be quiet." Kenshin gave him a look. "I'm serious! I really can be quiet when I need to be!"

"Ok Sano. We'll come get you two when Tokio-dono is gone." Sano nodded as Kenshin and Kaoru left the room, closing the sliding door behind them. After they were gone Sano sat cross-legged on the floor with a sigh.

"I'm bored already. What are we going to do to keep ourselves busy Fox?" The look on his face indicated that he could think of at least one thing. Megumi's fox ears made their appearance.

"I'm sure we'll come up with something." Megumi smiled slyly. Sano grinned.

------------------------

*contented sigh* Sano and Megumi worked things out. But now what's going on? It's out of the frying pan and into the fire! Tokio's been spying on them? What do they want with Sano? Can they outsmart Tokio and discover the truth? Read the next chapter and find out!   



	12. Chapter 11: The She-Wolf

Untitled Document 

Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

-----------------------

**Chapter 11: The She-Wolf**

Aoshi and Misao walked quietly down one of the main streets of Tokyo. "I can't believe we didn't find anything." Misao commented forlornly as she kicked a rock down the street. She was obviously disappointed at their lack of success. Aoshi didn't look any different than usual.

"One place left to check." He said quietly with a sideways glance at Misao. Misao looked up at him and saw the same old confident Aoshi. She smiled, immediately returning to her usual "genki" self.

"You're right. I'm sure we'll find something there." Aoshi saw the new look of resolve on her face and couldn't help but "smile".

When they reached the Fujita residence a quick look told them that there was no one home. They heard no voices or movement inside and when they checked they found the front gate was locked. Not to be easily deceived by appearances, Aoshi and Misao were especially careful not to make any noise as they hopped over the outer wall and into a few trees decorating the inner gardens. They crouched down quietly waiting to see if the slight noise they had made attracted any attention. After sitting completely silent for five minutes listening, they finally moved closer to the house. There really didn't seem to be anyone around.

Aoshi and Misao moved quietly around the side of the house to an obscure sliding door. They paused often listening through the walls to try and determine if anyone was inside. There was nothing but silence. They finally pushed open one of the doors and walked quietly inside. After a few more minutes they determined that the house really was empty. They immediately started searching the first room for any documents or clues. They went through most of the rooms quickly until they finally reached what had to be Tokio's bedroom.

On a dresser in plain sight sat a sealed, official looking, letter. Misao headed right over to it while Aoshi started feeling behind the wall scrolls for anything hidden. When Misao reached the dresser and took a look at the letter she almost let out a cry of surprise but with a quick hand over her own mouth she held it in. Aoshi's head shot up like she actually had yelled out. He rushed silently over to her to see what had caused such an "outburst". (In truth it was no louder than the sound of a hand covering a mouth gently) Misao picked up the sealed letter and handed it to Aoshi with wide eyes. Aoshi blinked and took a look at what was written on the outside of the letter. In beautiful script the letter was addressed: "To Shinomori Aoshi and Makimachi Misao." Aoshi looked more shocked than Misao had ever seen him in her life. He turned to her slowly and she knew that the look on her face couldn't be much better. Her eyes said everything. She had no idea what to think. Aoshi silently pulled the letter open feeling something he was not accustomed to: Apprehension.

~//~

At the dojo, practice was almost over. Yahiko was hard at work putting the young students through their closing exercises. He felt a certain amount of distraction knowing that there was something big going on. He didn't let it bother him and did his best to focus on the task at hand. As he watched Tsuyoshi he wondered to himself if the boy knew even half of what was going on. Was his father and mother using him as an excuse to have Tokio come over there every day without telling him the real reason? That idea bothered Yahiko too. Yahiko took a look at the clock on the wall and realized that practice was almost over. Soon it would be time to try and distract Tokio for Aoshi and Misao.

Kaoru came in to inspect the students as they finished up. Yutarou and Yahiko came up to stand beside her as she took a look at the row of students standing in proper kendo stance. She smiled, told everyone that they were doing well, and informed them that class was finished for the day. Everyone stood at attention and bowed to the instructor and teachers. Kaoru, Yahiko, and Yutarou bowed back and then the students started changing out of their practice clothes.

Outa was the first to get changed, as usual, and he ran out of the dojo to go finish up some of his chores. Kaoru had explained to Outa only that they were going to have Tsuyoshi and his mother over for dinner that night and that he wasn't supposed to say anything about Sanosuke. The boy didn't suspect a thing and wasn't even aware that his older brother was hiding in the main house. He ran off happily to finish his work and Kaoru watched him go. _For once, he and Tsuyoshi won't be fighting when Tokio-san shows up._ She smiled at the thought.

Kaoru glanced over to where Yahiko and Yutarou stood talking with some of the older students. Even though Yahiko had told Yutarou about the situation, neither of them let their apprehension show. Kaoru watched as Eiji made some comment and judging by the way Yahiko responded, he found whatever Eiji said very interesting.

"Really?" She could hear his voice above the constant chatter of the other students who were still waiting for their parents.

"Hold on a sec guys, I'll be right back." Yahiko made a beeline straight for her.

"What is it Yahiko?" Kaoru asked him. He had a strange look on his face.

"Eiji says that Tokio was going to ask us if they could stay for dinner tonight." Kaoru and Yahiko blinked at each other.

"Whoa." Was all Kaoru could find to say.

"That's what I was thinking." Yahiko said with a grin. "This is working out well so far." As he made the comment Fujita Tokio walked through the front gate. In her arms was a bag full of fresh food. She had a pleasant smile on her face as she greeted Yahiko and Kaoru.

"I brought some delicious food that I thought we could cook up for our families." Tokio told Kaoru after they had greeted each other.

"That sounds wonderful Tokio-san!" As they talked Tsuyoshi ran up to them and tugged on Tokio's kimono.

"Mother, are we going to stay for dinner?" The boy sounded excited.

"As long as Kaoru-san doesn't mind." Tokio said with a smile at Kaoru.

"Of course not!" Kaoru said returning the happy smile. "We can go get started cooking right away." Kaoru took the bag of food from Tokio and together they made their way to the kitchen.

Yahiko looked back and nodded at Yutarou, letting him know that everything was going according to plan. Yutarou returned the nod as Yahiko walked off to find Kenshin. He listened intently as he walked past the room where Megumi and Sanosuke were hiding. It was silent. Smiling to himself, Yahiko continued around to the front where he found Kenshin bouncing a ball with Kenji. Kenji kept knocking the ball away when Kenshin tried to bounce it.

"Now Kenji, that's not how you bounce the ball." Kenshin said as he retrieved the ball. He tried to demonstrate how to bounce it the correct way but Kenji just smacked it out of the way again.

"Oi Kenshin." Yahiko said as he walked up to him. "Tokio-dono and her family are going to be staying over for dinner." Yahiko gave him a confident look so that he would know everything was going according to plan. Kenshin smiled and nodded his understanding.

"That sounds great."

Inside the kitchen Kaoru and Tokio began cooking up a storm. Though Kaoru offered to help prepare all the food, Tokio politely insisted that she be the one to do most of the work. She was the one who had invited herself over after all. Her comments were so tactful that Kaoru never figured out that Tokio didn't want her to ruin the food.

"You sure brought a lot of food Tokio-san." Tokio turned to Kaoru and gave her a kind smile.

"We have to make sure we can feed everyone." Kaoru looked down at all the food lying around in the kitchen and knew that it wouldn't be a problem. They had enough food to feed both their families and then some.

"I hope the boys are hungry." Kaoru replied.

"You know how boys are." Tokio said with a little chuckle. "Oh dear." Tokio had stopped what she was doing and put her hands on her hips.

"What is it?" Kaoru asked.

"I forgot some of the food at my house." Kaoru carefully hid the thoughts that popped up into her head.

"Oh that's ok. We have plenty here." Tokio gave Kaoru a strange look. Kaoru wondered if some of her apprehension had come through. Had she replied too fast? Tokio appeared to be deep in thought.

"I suppose you're right. We'll just have to make due with what we have." Kaoru was relieved. The last thing they needed was Tokio walking in on Aoshi and Misao. The two women went back to work.

~//~

A little while later, Yahiko and Kenshin were sitting on the back porch. Kenji practiced with his shinai while Tsuyoshi and Outa sparred. Yahiko offered all sorts of advice and tips to the two students who were actually behaving themselves for once.   
The entire time, Yahiko couldn't help but keep his ears open waiting for any sound that might give away their hiding friends. _I'm really impressed that they've stayed quiet this long. We definitely cannot afford to make mistakes now._ Yahiko glanced over at Kenshin and read the same feeling on his face. He smiled at Yahiko and quietly said, "Don't worry, everything will be fine."

"Don't worry about what?" Eiji and Yutarou sat down on the back porch next to Yahiko and Kenshin. Yahiko was startled and he turned to his friends stammering unintelligibly. He couldn't let Eiji know what they were talking about. _He lives with Tokio after all_

"I Uh Um"

"Yahiko was worried about dinner." Kenshin lowered his voice confidentially. "I told him not to worry, because Tokio-dono's doing all the important cooking." Yahiko had just enough time to shoot Kenshin a thankful look before he was flew off the porch with an exclamation of "ororororororo". The three young men turned quickly and found Kaoru standing angrily with her foot still raised in the air after kicking her husband.

"I come out here to let you know the food is almost finished and I find you all insulting me behind my back! Who's next?" She rolled up her sleeves menacingly. Yahiko, Yutarou, and Eiji all flew off the porch and dodged out of the way as a bucket flew over their heads. Yahiko ran over to Kenshin as the other two scatted. Tsuyoshi and Outa stopped sparring and ran for cover while Kenji continued to practice with his shinai, ignoring the chaos around him. Yahiko pulled Kenshin to his feet and together they dashed off to safety as Kaoru's arsenal of household items flew through the air.

"You're all in BIG trouble! You hear me?" Kaoru was yelling at the top of her lungs. Kenshin and Yahiko leaned against the side of the house panting. "That goes DOUBLE for you Kenshin!" Kenshin gulped.

"Hehehe You're dead." Yahiko grinned.

"Orororo" Kenshin slid down the side of the wall and sat on the ground dejectedly. "You owe me one Yahiko." Yahiko snickered but before he could make another response the front door creaked open. Kenshin was on his feet in an instant and he and Yahiko dashed off to find out who was coming inside unannounced. Both unconsciously reached for their weapons, sensing that something had gone wrong. When they saw Aoshi and Misao walk through the front gate carrying a tray of food and a case of Sake Yahiko and Kenshin skidded to a halt.

"What are you two doing?" Yahiko barely kept himself from yelling. Aoshi and Misao both gave him a strange look but neither answered his question. Yahiko walked right up to them and angrily whispered. "They're still HERE." Aoshi looked down at Yahiko, unfazed by his comment. After a long moment he finally broke his silence.

"Hold this." He handed Yahiko the case of Sake and the young swordsman was too confused to argue. Aoshi pulled a letter out of one of his coat pockets and handed it to Kenshin. "We found this at the Fujita residence." Aoshi's voice sounded odd. He was even more subdued than usual. And Misao stood watching them all in complete silence. Yahiko eyed her suspiciously and then took a step closer to Kenshin to look at the letter.

"What is it?" When Kenshin and Yahiko read whom the letter was addressed to both their heads shot up in surprise. Aoshi and Misao remained silent and quietly urged them to open up the letter and read for themselves:

"Return to the dojo, the answers you seek are there. When you come could you please bring the tray of ohagi sitting in my kitchen and if you would be so kind as to pick up some Sake for later I'm sure that would be greatly appreciated. I look forward to meeting you. - Fujita Tokio."

Kenshin and Yahiko found themselves looking back at Aoshi and Misao with the same expression the two Oniwabanshu had plastered to their faces. They stood there for a minute or two not knowing what to say or do. When the blonde haired Keishichou agent casually walked through the open gate they were all still standing there. They didn't even react when Chou walked right up to them.

"So is dinner ready?" Chou asked them. His tone was completely casual. He sounded like he was supposed to be there and everyone was supposed to know he was coming. He acted like it was only natural that he would be coming over for dinner, though none of the dumbfounded people standing in the entry gate had any idea he'd be showing up. Chou took a step toward Misao and opened up the lid of the tray of food she was carrying. "Yum, my favorite." He commented when he saw the ohagi. "Tokio-san does ohagi like no other. Well, what are we standing around for? Let's go eat." It seemed like the right thing to do at the moment. Kenshin, Yahiko, Aoshi, and Misao all followed Chou toward the house in shocked silence.   
Inside the kitchen, dinner was finally finished. Kaoru looked around and knew that they had cooked too much food. Kaoru pulled out serving trays and set them on the counter and then turned to Tokio.

"There's no way we'll be able to eat everything." Tokio seemed to ignore her and continued looking through the cupboards.

"Do you have any more bowls?" Kaoru looked down at the stack and counted. There were exactly enough for each of them.   
"I already have enough bowls." Kaoru told her. Tokio kept looking.

"We need a few more trays as well." Kaoru was starting to get confused. She had exactly enough of everything already sitting out. Tokio didn't seem like she was listening to her so Kaoru just walked over and got some more trays and bowls out. As she was setting them down on the counter Tokio turned toward the door to the kitchen and a smile came to her face.

"Glad you could all make it." Kaoru turned to see whom she was addressing and was quite surprised to see Aoshi, Misao, Yahiko, Kenshin, and Chou standing in the hallway. Yahiko stepped inside and set down a case of Sake and Misao walked right up to Tokio carrying a tray. Each of them had a strange look on their face, except Chou who looked absolutely comfortable.

"Here's the ohagi, Tokio-san." Misao told Tokio who took the tray with a smile of gratitude.

"Thank you Misao-chan." Misao gave her a polite little bow with her head. Kaoru's mouth dropped open. What are Misao and Aoshi doing here? And why is Chou here? And how come Tokio knows Misao? And why do they all look so stupid?? None of Kaoru's thoughts escaped as she watched everyone in disbelief.

"Dinner is ready. Shall we eat?" Tokio smiled warmly at each of the people in the kitchen.

"Hell yeah." Chou was the only one to reply as he threw his hand up in the air happily.

"What's going on?" Kaoru finally managed to ask. Kenshin and Yahiko both turned to look at her but didn't say a thing.

"Kenshin? Yahiko? Anybody?" Tokio handed Kaoru the stack of trays.

"Go take these into the biggest room in your house. Don't worry I'll explain everything after we eat." Tokio looked just the same as always; calm, serene, and happy. Kaoru was so confused she did exactly what Tokio told her to do.

"Can I help with something, Tokio-dono?" Kenshin asked coming up to her and bowing his head respectfully. She handed him two trays of food. Yahiko stepped up without a word and held out his hands to be loaded up with another stack of trays. Misao and Aoshi were close behind. In no time, the room they had chosen to eat in was prepared. There were two extra places. No one even bothered asking Tokio who they were for.

"Yahiko-kun, would you please go invite Sanosuke-san and Megumi-san to dinner?" Yahiko walked out of the room and headed down the hall to get Sanosuke and Megumi in silence. "Kaoru-san. Would you please go round up the children?" Kaoru stood and gave a small bow as she exited the room. "Thank you for picking up the Sake, Aoshi-san. I'm sure Sanosuke-san will enjoy it." Aoshi bowed his head as well.

"It was my pleasure, Tokio-dono." Tokio smiled at each of them left in the room.

"I think it would be best to wait to explain things until the children are finished eating." Tokio said, looking at Kenshin. "Don't you think so, Himura-san?" Kenshin nodded.

"That seems like it would be for the best, that it does."

Down the hall, Yahiko had reached the door to the room Sanosuke and Megumi were hiding in. Without a word of warning he slid the door open. Yahiko was already in a state of shock so when he found Megumi and Sano half naked on a futon together he didn't even blink. Megumi's kimono was untied and revealingly open in the front. Sano wore nothing but his pants that were untied and hanging lower than usual. The two were entwined, passionately kissing each other and completely oblivious to their audience.

It wasn't the first time that Yahiko had stumbled in on two people in such a situation. Of course, finding THESE TWO people locked together would have shocked Yahiko speechless if hadn't already been shocked that day. Under normal circumstances, Yahiko would have slid the door shut and ran for his life. But these were anything but normal circumstances. Yahiko cleared his throat to get their attention.

Megumi and Sano both froze and then looked up at him slowly. Megumi let out a cry of surprise and grabbed the empty tray that had held their dinner. She whipped the wooden tray and nailed Yahiko right in the head. He staggering back out of the room as Megumi shoved Sanosuke off of her and pulled her kimono tightly over her chest, backing away from Sano in embarrassment. Sanosuke was on his feet in an instant and he stormed out into the hall after Yahiko. One hand held the back of his pants so they didn't fall off and his other hand quickly found Yahiko's collar. He picked Yahiko off the ground and pinned him against one of the support beams in the wall.

"What the hell do you think you're doing Yahiko!!?" Yahiko was too dazed to reply but the loud shouting had drawn the attention of the others down the hall. Kenshin, Aoshi, Misao, Tokio, and Chou all peeked their heads out to see what was going on. Kaoru came around the corner with Eiji, Yutarou, Kenji, Tsuyoshi, and Outa just a moment later. Sanosuke was standing there holding Yahiko up in the air against the wall, wearing nothing but a very loose pair of drawstring pants and the bandages on his right hand. His hair was a mess and everyone with any experience in the matter knew exactly what he had been doing. Some of Megumi's make-up was smeared on his face and chest. The hair on the back of Sano's neck stood up as he turned slowly. He found everyone staring at him.

"Oh Shit."

------------------------

If you've read this far and stop now, there's something wrong with you. This is one of my favorite cliffhangers. :) What's going to happen, you ask? READ THE NEXT CHAPTER!! *wink* It's time for some answers! 


	13. Chapter 12: The Explanation

Untitled Document 

Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

-----------------------

**Chapter 12: The Explanation**

Sanosuke's attempt to remain hidden was particularly pathetic. In hindsight, he realized that he must have looked stupid as he dropped Yahiko to the ground and dove inside the guest room. Everyone had spent an entire minute staring at him. Unfortunately, it was all he could come up with. He rolled to his feet inside the room and turned in an instant, sliding the door shut behind him.

"Chikusho this is not good." Sano turned his back to the door and spread his hands behind him, holding the door shut. It was then that he noticed Megumi. _This is DEFINITELY not good._ She looked at him furiously as she tried to regain her composure and decency. "Don't give me that look, Fox. I think we're really in trouble." His pants chose that moment to start slipping. Sano released his hold on the door just in time to catch them. He tied his pant strings hastily but when he reached behind him to hold the door all he found was air.

"Ano Sano?" Sanosuke jumped in surprise and turned around looking rather guilty. Kenshin stood in the doorway with a questioning look on his face.

"Kenshin! It's Yahiko's fault!" Sano frantically pointed at Yahiko who had slumped to the floor in a daze. Megumi covered her face and shook her head in embarrassment.

"It's alright Sano." Kenshin said calmly. "Plans have changed a bit. Why don't you two come have some dinner? We'll explain everything afterwards." Kenshin turned to go but stopped, looking Sano and Megumi over. "Feel free to take a minute to get yourselves cleaned up first." He gave them a little smile and then walked into the hallway, pulling Yahiko to his feet and half dragging him down the hallway. Sanosuke slid the door shut once again. He leaned against it, exhaling in relief.

"Phew, we're not in trouble." He turned to grin at Megumi but the smile never made it to his face. She was still glaring at him. If her look had been any harsher it would have been lethal. Sano gulped. "Maybe I spoke too soon." His hands reached for the door slowly but he didn't get it open in time to escape.

Down the hallway they were about to start eating when they heard Megumi yelling. Random curses and threats mingled freely with harsh comments about Sano's intelligence. Finally, the incoherent string of phrases turned into a series of angry questions. "Why didn't you hear Yahiko open the door??? Do you know how this makes us look!?? I told you we should behave ourselves!!! Why did I listen to you??? Sano no baka!!"

A string of insults and threats followed and a moment later everyone heard a pair of running footsteps in the hall. Sano slid past the open door and then darted inside, diving for cover behind Kenshin. Megumi was a few paces behind him and when she made it to the open door she stood searching quickly for her prey. Her eyes were smoldering in their anger as she immediately noticed Sano cowering behind his red-haired friend. A picture instantly popped into Kenshin's head of a fox chasing a chicken and the resulting fate of the poor bird. Kenshin held up his hands and put on his best happy, calming face.

"Maa Maa, Megumi-dono. Please calm down." Sano peeked around Kenshin's shoulder.

"Yeah, c'mon Fox. Relax."

"You." Megumi turned and grabbed the nearest object and hoisted it threateningly above her head. Sano yelped and held Kenshin directly in front of him as the bucket flew through the air and struck Kenshin in the face. As Kenshin went limp Sano swore.

"Chikusho Fox, who do you think you are? Jo-chan?" Kenshin's body may have been protecting Sano from the front, but no one was protecting him from behind. The crack of Kaoru's bokken caused all the young men to wince in sympathy.

"What's that supposed to mean, Sanosuke?!" Sano grabbed the back of his head and turned to see Kaoru towering over him threateningly.

"Stay out of this tanuki girl! I can teach the rooster a lesson by myself!" Megumi had procured a stool and she was ready to throw it.

"Your aim is off, vixen! That's my husband you hit!" Kaoru waved her bokken angrily in Megumi's direction.

"Rooster-head is the one who put Ken-san in danger! Stop pointing your toy sword at me!"

"That's why I was GOING to take it out on Sano!"

"Fine, we'll both make him suffer!" Kaoru and Megumi both turned their evil looks at Sano. Sano backed up against the wall, getting as much distance between him and the two crazed women as possible. They advanced threateningly and just when Sanosuke knew he was a goner, an unexpected event took place.

"Leave my brother alone!" Outa was on his feet and he dashed into the path of Megumi and Kaoru. He put his hands out protectively so that no projectiles could get past him. Sano cowered behind him, putting his hands on the young boy's shoulders so he could move him in the way if someone did try to hit him. Outa mistook it for gratitude.

"Get out of the way Outa." Kaoru and Megumi continued advancing but Outa didn't budge and couldn't have if he'd wanted to.

"I'm not moving Kaoru-dono!"

"Don't talk to my mommy that way!" Kenji's little voice joined in the mix as a bowlful of hot soup splashed against Outa's pants. The little boy had crept up behind his mother and tossed his bowl of soup once he was in range. Outa howled and jumped in the air. Kenji ran off giggling but in a moment he was running for his life. Outa raced off after him, instantly changing Kaoru's focus.

"Leave Kenji alone!" Bokken above her head, Kaoru chased after Outa who chased after Kenji. Meanwhile, Sano was left with no protection against Megumi. She prepared to bash him with the stool but Sano jumped to his feet and dashed back toward the group. As he ran through the food he tried not to knock anything over but he wasn't completely successful. One kicked tray ended up landing in a certain Okashira's lap.

"Kuso Rooster-head!! You ruined my new outfit!" Misao was on her feet in an instant. "Kencho Kick!" She flew through the air in Sano's direction but he deftly avoided her patented "demon bird kick". Instead, Misao's foot and Yahiko's face became acquainted. Yahiko roared to his feet swearing profusely and chased after Misao.

"I didn't mean to kick YOU Yahiko!"

"Chikusho weasel girl! That hurt!"

While the two groups chased each other around causing havoc and destruction, Tokio and Chou turned to each other in silent wonder. Tokio blinked in confusion, having never seen this side of the group in all her visits to the dojo. Chou had nothing to comment so he shook his head slowly, shrugging his shoulders slightly. Tsuyoshi, Eiji, and Yutarou were soon caught up in the insanity as food, trays, and practice swords flew through the air. Outa and Tsuyoshi took the opportunity to renew their unsettled argument and were soon rolling on the floor in a cloud of arms and legs. The entire time, Megumi lined up for a shot with her stool. When she thought she had one, she let her stool fly. Her trajectory was off and she realized a moment too late that Sano would never be hit by the projectile. When the stool crashed into Shinomori Aoshi's face, Megumi suddenly realized how childish she was being, and how being childish often got you in trouble. For a moment she cringed, fearing Aoshi's reaction. Oddly enough, there was none. The stool had hit him with enough force to leave Kenshin "oroing" on the floor, but the former okashira of the Oniwabanshu didn't even blink. Instead, he paused briefly and then sipped his tea.

"Aoshi-sama!" Concern quickly turned to a threat. "Leave him alone Fox!" Misao was so caught up in the madness of the moment that she didn't think twice as she procured her kunai from nowhere and threw them at Megumi. Megumi stared blankly as four kunai flew through the air in her direction. There was no way she could dodge them in time. Someone was by her side in an instant and hefted her off her feet and out of the way. Once Megumi was out of the way, the four kunai continued seeking the next victim who was unlucky enough to be in their path.

All fighting stopped and all eyes were riveted to the kunai, as they seemed to fly through the air in slow motion directly toward Tokio. A collective gasp escaped their lips as the kunai continued, oblivious to how much trouble everyone would be in if something happened to Saitoh Tokio. Those who closed their eyes in horror missed Tokio's reaction. In one sweep, she caught all four of the kunai in her hand. Her movements were so fast that some of the viewers didn't even see them. It almost seemed like the kunai just disappeared out of the air and magically appeared in her hand. Misao, Megumi, Sanosuke, Kaoru, Kenshin, Yahiko, Yutarou, and Outa all sighed in relief as Tokio dropped the kunai to the ground unharmed.

"Are we all finished yet?" Everyone stared at her in silence. Once again, they were reminded of the fact that Tokio was there for a reason. "Let's finish what's left of our food." It was a reprimand without any sort of malice or anger, and it hit home with the Kenshin-gumi. Everyone stopped what they were doing and moved to their places quietly, in a mix of shame and embarrassment.

"Whoa." Sano commented in quiet awe as the scene instantly changed. Megumi looked over at him and suddenly realized that he had been the one who had saved her from the kunai. She also realized that he was still holding her in his arms. Their earlier argument popped back into her head and she squirmed uncomfortably.

"Put me down rooster-head." She whispered. Sano looked over at her; apparently he too had forgotten that he was holding her in his arms.

"Oh, sorry fox." He set her down without a complaint or further comment. Megumi moved away from him and composed herself. No one made any comments about her behavior so Megumi tentatively knelt on the floor in front of her tray.   
After a moment, Sano plopped down on the floor next to Megumi. He took a look at his tray of undamaged food and then glanced around at everyone else. "So um" He muttered, searching Tokio's face for answers. She held up her hand.

"Please Sanosuke-san, we can wait to discuss it until after we eat." Her eyes rested on the children quietly munching away. Sano looked over and realized that she didn't want to talk about it in front of the children. Without another word he dug happily into his food.

  
~//~

  
Silence prevailed throughout the remainder of the meal. There was some scattered small talk but it never caught on. Megumi was still too angry to talk, Yahiko and Misao were still pissed, some of the younger children were pouting, Kenshin didn't have much to say, and Aoshi never has much to say. Sano sat in silence eyeing Tokio and Chou. The blonde haired former member of the Juppon Gatana shot Sano strange looks but didn't break the silence so Sano started ignoring them.

After dinner was finished Tokio turned to Eiji and Yutarou. "Would you two take the children outside and keep an eye on them?" Yutarou looked over at Kenshin and Kaoru and when they didn't seem to object he nodded.

"Sure." He got to his feet with Eiji and the two young swordsmen took the three younger children outside. "Thanks for dinner." Eiji and Yutarou both gave Tokio and Kaoru a little bow of appreciation as they herded the children from the room.

"Yahiko-kun." Yahiko looked up at Tokio.

"Hai, Tokio-dono?"

"Would you please go get the Sake from the kitchen." A smile crept to Sanosuke's face as he picked his teeth with a toothpick. Yahiko nodded and got to his feet, leaving the room.

"So are you going to tell me what's going on now?" Sanosuke asked, turning to Chou and Tokio.

"Perhaps we should wait for the Sake." Tokio replied. Chou grinned and Sano folded his arms indifferently.

"Fine by me. But I don't know how a little Sake is going to make a difference."

"You'll need a drink when we're through with you." Chou leaned forward with an evil smirk.

"What's that supposed to mean, broom-head?"

"I shouldn't have to explain it, rooster-head. It means you're not going to like what we have to tell you!"

"Then maybe the Sake isn't going to make a difference and you should just tell me what's going on right now." Sano narrowed his eyes and glared at Chou.

"Well, here's the situation in a nutshell." Chou closed one of his eyes and regarded Sano with the same evil smirk. "We're taking you to Hokkaido to do a job for us and you don't have any choice in the matter." Sano growled low in his throat. Everyone else sat in tense silence.

"Why the hell don't I have a choice?" Chou pulled a paper out from his vest and tossed it to Sano casually. Sano glared at Chou for a moment before opening up the paper and reading it over. His jaw clenched angrily as he read.

"What is it Sanosuke?" Megumi asked, leaning over to try and read the letter. Sanosuke crumpled it up before she could.

"It's a warrant for his arrest." Chou informed Megumi and the rest of the gang. "Mr. Tani is still very interesting in seeing you punished for your crimes." Chou was grinning. In a flash, Sanosuke reached across the trays of food separating them and grabbed Chou by the collar of his gi pulling him closer.

"Kisama!" Sano roared and Chou's eyes bugged out in shock as he grabbed at Sano's hand in an attempt to free himself from his grip. Megumi tried to pull Sanosuke back and Kaoru, Kenshin, and Misao all called out in surprise. Sano was about to pull back his other fist and pummel Chou's face but he didn't have a chance. The whole thing happened so fast that Kenshin didn't even have time to get over there before Tokio put a stop to it. She was sitting right next to Chou and in an instant she lashed out jabbing Sanosuke in the elbow and wrist pressure points. His hand fell away from Chou's gi and he looked over at Tokio in astonishment. His entire arm was paralyzed. A moment later Yahiko walked back in with the Sake.

"Did I miss something?" Everyone was staring at either Tokio or Sano who held his arm to his chest like he was afraid it was going to be cut off.

"Chikusho! What did you do to my arm?" Tokio was calm as she replied to Sanosuke's furious question.

"I simply immobilized it. I'm sorry but I can't have you hurting one of my fellow agents. Don't worry, it will wear off shortly." Sano swore under his breath. "Are you ready to listen now Sanosuke-san?"

"Like I have a choice." Sano muttered. Tokio regarded him in silence for a moment and then turned to the rest of the group.

"As some of you already know, my husband is working in Hokkaido right now." Tokio made eye contact with each of the people in the room. "He has been stationed up there since early spring working on the same assignment."

"What kind of assignment?" Sano interrupted.

"There were some strange reports coming from the Hokkaido Provincial Prison and my husband was sent to investigate." Sanosuke's eyes narrowed.

"A prison?" Coming from Sanosuke the word sounds like a curse.

"The Hokkaido Provincial Prison is a maximum security prison for dangerous offenders and traitors to the Meiji Government. In short, it is a den of evil. Any people that the Meiji government doesn't want to deal with are sent there. The location is one that creates a formidable natural prison. It is essentially impossible to escape from, even without all the guards armed with the latest weaponry."

"What do you mean by 'natural prison'?" Yahiko inquired.

"The prison is located in central Hokkaido in the mountains. It is high enough that the snow never leaves the ground. If a prisoner were to escape from the prison they would freeze to death before making it out of the mountains. If someone does manage to escape, prison policy is usually to let them die of exposure."

"Nice place." Sanosuke snorted derisively. "But I still don't get what Saitoh is supposed to be doing there. Or more importantly, how I fit into any of this." He gave Tokio a serious look.

"My husband has been tracking movement into and out of the prison. In the last few years, the prison has been transferring in many dangerous criminals. In the prison itself, many of the prisoners are killed on a yearly basis. Members of the staff and prison guards are also killed quite often. The numbers themselves are alarming, but more alarming by far is the identities of those who survive and those who die." Everyone was silently listening to Tokio explain, looks of concentration on their faces. Tokio paused a moment to look them over.

"Please continue Tokio-dono." Kenshin said as she met his gaze.

"The people who are killed, be it prisoner or faculty, are those that are loyal to the Meiji government. Even the guards and captains in charge are known for their disagreements with the government. Another common element among the victims is a lack of radical tendencies. If someone is rational or levelheaded they are killed. If they are not accomplished warriors, they also suffer the same fate. In short, the only people left in the prison, prisoner and otherwise, are violent, irrational warriors with anti-Meiji sentiments." Tokio gave everyone a moment to let things sink in then she continued. "Many political prisoners from the Bakumatsu are there as well. Strangely enough, over the last few years we have lost outside record of those political prisoners who are actually still in the prison." Misao looked a little surprised.

"Has someone been destroying police records?" Tokio nodded.

"It seems so. And no accurate records have been sent from the prison itself. This is one of the original indicators of the problem. My husband has been placed in charge of retrieving information from inside the prison."

"Well, that shouldn't be hard." Yahiko commented. "Can't he just walk in there and request the information? Even if there is something strange going you should still be able to get information from them. If they refused to give the information everyone would know there was a problem and then the army could move in and take them down." Chou gave Yahiko a look of astonishment.

"You're smarter than you look kid." He said with a grin. Yahiko, in turn, glared at him.

"We tried that from the beginning." Tokio informed them sadly. "A formal request for information is met with perfect procedure. They give full access to their records and the prison itself. Everything is neatly carried out and comes out looking as though there is nothing going on. Each death at the prison is documented and filed. Prisoners are exactly where they are supposed to be. Those prisoners that are thought to be missing are not even on the records or they are reported as deceased. Everything appears to be running smoothly when formal requests for information are sent in. Of course, when compared to the other files and information we have, it is easy to determine that the records have been falsified. Unfortunately, there is so much red tape that the government cannot act until we have solid evidence."

"Hang on, I'm not following ya." Sanosuke rubbed his tingling arm and looked at Tokio in confusion.

"Try using smaller words Tokio-san, the rooster is about as clever as a stump." Chou glared at Sanosuke.

"Watch it broom-head, I'm this close to shutting your yap." Sano held up his hand with finger and thumb an inch apart to show Chou exactly how close he was. Tokio looked at Sanosuke patiently.

"Sanosuke-san, please do not threaten Chou-san anymore." Sano dropped his hand and looked back at the beautiful woman. "What I am telling you, simply put, is that they have been lying to everyone outside the prison. This information leads us to believe that there is some type of conspiracy going on between prisoners and prison faculty. The idea that such dangerous criminals may be unchecked has caused quite a bit of commotion in the Keishichou."

"But what do you need ME for?" Sanosuke looked exasperated.

"Well Sanosuke-san, with your interesting background you are in a perfect position to lend us your assistance." Sano's eyes narrowed.

"What's so interesting about my background?"

"You are one of the only surviving members of the Sekihotai, an army falsely punished by the Meiji government for some of its own crimes. You are a former gangster and fighter for hire. You have a reputation for instilling fear in your opponents. You attempted to bomb government buildings to make former Ishin Shishi's pay for their crimes." At the mention of his one night stint as a terrorist a wry smile came to Sano's lips. Yahiko and the others looked at Sanosuke in confusion.

"When did that happen?" Yahiko interrupted Tokio's listing of Sano's background information. Kenshin and Sanosuke gave each other a strange look.

"You never told them?" Kenshin shook his head in response to Sano's question.

"I didn't think there was much to tell, to tell you the truth."

"What are you talking about Kenshin?" Kaoru asked her husband. "I thought you've told me everything?"

"Well, this is only a small thing that happened between Sanosuke and I. I didn't think it was my place to tell any of you about it. If Sano had wanted you to know he would have told you himself, of that I am sure." Sanosuke grinned.

"It's nothing for you all to worry about. I just went out with my friend Katsu one night intending to blow up government buildings. Kenshin convinced me it wasn't worth it." Sanosuke and Kenshin both smiled at each other.

"It was an interesting night." Kenshin commented, remembering their midnight battle. The others looked at Kenshin and then at Sanosuke.

"At any rate Tokio-san, I think I can see what you're getting at." Sanosuke looked at Tokio. "My background and record looks pretty bad. Bad enough that I certainly wouldn't be killed in the prison due to loyalty to the Meiji government." Tokio nodded at him.

"Precisely. And you are also a very talented fighter so we're not concerned about you not being able to hold your own in the prison."

"So what? You're going to send Sano into the prison to get your information?" Yahiko asked.

"That is what we were planning." Tokio nodded at the young swordsman.

"Of course, we have the added incentive of your warrant to make sure that you help us out." Chou commented with a wry grin at Sano. "If you don't come with us, you're going to be going to prison for real. If you help us out we make sure you're record is cleaned so that you never have to worry about THIS particular crime again."

"When we reach Hokkaido my husband will explain everything in more detail but for now I think you get the point."

"Tokio-dono?" Tokio and the others all turned to look at Kenshin. "I have a question."

"Yes, Kenshin-san?"

"Why didn't you just explain this to us earlier. I'm sure we could have helped you and your husband out sooner if you had told us." Tokio gave Kenshin a smile that seemed just a little sad.

"I'm sorry, we really did not want to get the rest of you involved. My husband has been sending in undercover agents for the last few months trying to get things taken care of. Each of the agents have been discovered somehow, and killed." Everyone looked surprised. "And so you see, this is a dangerous assignment and because of that, my husband did not want to have to involve more people than necessary."

"Whoa, wait a minute." Megumi looked like she was about to get angry. "You've gotten people killed doing the exact same thing you want Sano to go do? What's to keep him from getting killed like the rest of them?"

"We are hoping that Sanosuke-san's background will protect him. We believe that the agent's true identities were all discovered, which resulted in their deaths."

"You're HOPING? So you don't even know for sure if this is going to work and you're still going to risk his life?" Tokio gave Megumi a look that seemed to say that she didn't like the situation any more than Megumi did. Megumi didn't buy it. "What if they were killed because they wouldn't agree to join the conspiracy? How can you be sure of anything??"

"We can't be sure." Tokio said quietly with a trace of sadness. "But the situation is one that needs to be taken care of before something terrible happens. I'm afraid this is a lot of pressure to place on your shoulders Sanosuke-san. Will you help us?" Tokio gave Sanosuke a searching look. He seemed to be thinking things through for himself.

"You can't possibly be considering it!" Megumi turned to Sano. "Sano, it sounds like its going to be dangerous, don't do it."

"Hey woman, didn't you hear that he doesn't have a choice in the matter?" Chou folded his arms and gave Megumi his trademark look with one eye closed.

"Of course he has a choice!" Chou just continued giving her his confident look. Megumi got even angrier. "Don't you think for a minute that you could take him in against his will! If Sanosuke wanted to he could run away again and none of you Keishichou agents would ever find him!" Megumi looked about ready to throw something at Chou. Sanosuke reached up and placed his hand on her shoulder tenderly.

"It's alright Megumi. You're right, it is my choice, and I choose to help them out." Tokio and Chou both looked relieved. Megumi turned to him angrily. He brushed his hand against her cheek and lifted her chin so she was looking him right in the face. In a soothing voice he continued. "I don't want to have to run away again..."

"But!" He put his finger to her lips silencing her gently.

"Shhhh Please Megumi. You're not making this any easier." Megumi looked down at the floor. The others watched the display quietly. There was still something strange about Sanosuke and Megumi showing their affection openly.

"So you'll help us out then Sanosuke-san?" Tokio was smiling at him again.

"You guys don't leave me much choice. And besides, Sagara Sanosuke doesn't back down from a fight." He indicated himself with his thumb for a moment and then slowly lowered his hand. "I'm ready for that drink now."

------------------------

Now you know the basic plot for the fic! Next chapter, plans are made and details are discovered. Who's going with Sano to the prison? What do they need to do first? What do the women think of all this?? Read on! 


	14. Chapter 13: For the Sake of Japan

Untitled Document 

Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com (if you haven't been there, go... you'll enjoy it, trust me...)

Beta Reader: Karina Kineshi (thank you so much for your time and super helpful suggestions!!)

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

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**Chapter 13: For the Sake of Japan**

"Wonderful, now that _that's_ settled." Tokio smiled at each of them and set the tray of sake on the floor in front of Sanosuke. Yahiko held up a hand to stop her from continuing, his serious expression causing her to pause.

"It's not settled." The others focused their attention on the young swordsman.

"What do you mean, Yahiko-kun?" Tokio asked him.

"I'm sorry but, you're wrong if you think you can just send Sanosuke into danger alone. You didn't want to get the rest of us involved, but it's too late for that now. Sano just came back to Japan and there's no way I'm going to let him run off alone again."

"Yahiko" Sano muttered softly as he watched the mature young swordsman.

"Besides" Yahiko smirked. "Rooster-head's too stupid to be able to handle this alone." Sano moment of pride dropped along with his jaw. A nice comment from Yahiko always seemed to be coupled with a rude one.

"What Yahiko says is true Tokio-dono." There was just enough of a pause after Kenshin said these words for Sano to take them the wrong way. He started muttering under his breath. "I will not stand by and watch if there is anything I can do to help protect the ones I care about, that I will not." There was general group consensus.

"So you're going to have to take us with you Tokio-san!" Yahiko jumped to his feet with a mix of excitement and determination. "Nobody splits up the Kenshin-gumi!" Everyone watched Tokio expectantly as she placed her cup of tea down on the floor and slid it a few inches away from her. Behind her clear, knowing, eyes everyone could see thoughts churning in her mind. She exchanged a glance with Chou and then turned back to the others clearing her throat quietly.

"We were hoping to avoid this situation by only informing Sagara-san of the problem. No one else was supposed to get involved, but Hajime suspected something of the sort might happen." She made eye contact with a few of the people in the room. "We have conceived a role that may be played by two of you." Tokio gave Aoshi and Yahiko a meaningful glance. "But I'm afraid the rest of you would only cause difficulty for the mission. That includes you, Himura-san." Tokio lowered her eyes as Kenshin turned his piercing violet gaze to her.

"But Kenshin's the best of the best..." Yahiko stammered. "With him involved there's no way we won't succeed" Yahiko trailed off and then came back with more force. "It's not the Kenshin-gumi without Kenshin!"

"I didn't come here to get the 'Kenshin-gumi'. I came here to get Kenkaya Zanza." Sano's head shot up. The others slowly looked in his direction.

"Kenkaya Zanza?" His eyes flashed darkly but quickly returned to normal. "I'm afraid you're not going to find him I'm not Zanza, and I never intend to be him again."

"It's merely a role Sagara-san. You have the perfect alias; one that the Keishichou doesn't even have to provide you with. You might be surprised to hear that Zanza's fame has only grown in the last five years. Tales of the gangster turned freeloader turned gangster have spread all over the underworld."

"Gangster turned freeloader turned gangster?" Megumi's head turned slowing in Sano's direction.

"When did you turn from a freeloader to a gangster Sanosuke?" Kaoru sounded confused and the others all looked at him waiting for his answer.

"I never had time to explain before I left but well, that's part of the reason I had to flee Japan."

"But I thought you had to leave because you made enemies with crooked Meiji politicians?" Kenshin searched his friend's face.

"Yeah but first. I was kinda working for them... It was only for a while. I was messed up, ya know? I still thought Kaoru was dead and that you'd given up on life." Sano met his friends' looks. Kaoru and Kenshin both looked uncomfortable as they were reminded of the terrible things they'd all gone through because of Enishi. "I thought opening up my old business would help me to relieve my stress In the end it was actually my father who knocked some sense into me. I helped him out and stopped the people who had originally hired me to defeat him."

"You were hired to defeat your own father?" Megumi raised an eyebrow. "That's messed up, rooster-head."

"Hey fox, it's not like I knew who I was getting hired to fight! When I saw him we sat down and had a nice civilized conversation and I realized that I was wrong." Megumi snorted.

"That sounds like a lie Sagara Sanosuke."

"Well anyway, that's not the point! The point is, YES I went back to being Zanza for a bit, and NO I'm not going to be Zanza anymore." He crossed his arms.

"At least not for real." Tokio smiled at him predatorily, and for the first time everyone knew that on some level, she and Saitoh were the same. "For the sake of Japan, you must take on the role of Kenkaya Zanza one more time. To kick off Zanza's return we have a proposition we think you'll like. Chou." Tokio gave the floor to Chou and the blonde haired Keishichou agent failed to hide his excitement.

"Before sending you off to prison there's one important thing that must be done. You need to be arrested. In style." Chou reached inside his vest pocket and pulled out another paper and tossed it to Sanosuke. Sano read it without hesitation. Whatever was written on the paper seemed to please the ex-gangster. The others crowded around waiting for Sanosuke to tell them what he was reading.

"Is this for real?" Sanosuke asked looking up at Chou hopefully. In response Chou nodded in affirmation.

"What is it Sano?" Yahiko asked as his curiosity piqued.

"It seems my old friend Mr. Tani is up to no good again." Sano casually handed the paper over to Yahiko so the young swordsman could read it over. Chou decided to explain it for the rest of them.

"The Keishichou keeps tabs on a lot of crooked politicians. Unfortunately, we have to have enough evidence to put them away before we make any moves against them. This is a pain in the ass." Aoshi shook his head imperceptibly as Chou spoke, amazed by the man's lack of professionalism. Chou continued, oblivious to Aoshi. "We know that Tani is as crooked as they come but we don't have any hard evidence against him. Tomorrow night we 'suspect' he is meeting with some of his underworld contacts." The way Chou said 'suspect' made it obvious that the Keishichou didn't 'suspect' anything. They knew. "They're 'probably' going to be going over their records of recent illegal business transactions. Some of their 'merchandise' should be there as well. Mr. Tani is suspected of selling off important and very secret government documents to the highest bidder. If we were to catch him with the documents we'd have enough hard evidence to put him away for life."

"And that's where I come in?" Sanosuke asked leaning forward as if in anticipation.

"Yup, you get to waltz in there and beat the shit out of Mr. Tani and his little friends. When the cops show up to stop you they'll 'discover' the documents and Mr. Tani will have a one-way ticket to jail. The bigger the mess you make the better it will look for your prison record."

"So, you want me to resist arrest, huh?"

"Of course. The more cops you beat on the tougher you'll look. Naturally you aren't allowed to kill any of them or seriously injure them. Think you can handle that?"

"Sure, as long as you don't mind having a bunch of unconscious cops to deal with. But honestly, there's no way they'll be able to take me in if I keep fighting them." Megumi rolled her eyes at Sano's bravado.

"We know how effective you are rooster-head. Don't think for a minute that we haven't been checking up on your skills." Chou paused a moment while Sano tried to figure out what he was talking about.

"Chikusho Sano" Something clicked in Yahiko's mind. "Remember those black faced guys we beat the night we went out gambling?" Apparently Yahiko had forgotten the rest of the people in the room.

"You two got in a fight!?" Megumi glared at the ex-gangster.

"What were you doing gambling!?" Kaoru turned to Yahiko. Yahiko was quick to scratch the back of his head and laugh weakly.

"Well um I mean"

Ignoring the women, Sano popped one fist onto his open hand like he'd just gotten a revelation. "Ah ha! You must have been the one who hired them!" Sano pointed his finger at Chou who rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Damn you guys are clever" The sarcasm was thick enough to cut with a sakabatou. "Yeah yeah, I hired those losers to kill you guys."

"NANI!??" Megumi, Misao, and Kaoru's voices seemed to shake the roof. Once the men had recovered and the women were restrained from attacking Chou he continued.

"Kill two birds with one stone I figured."

"Yahiko does not even resemble a bird you you you terrible cop!" Kaoru fumed.

"That's not what I meant!" Chou was getting a little frustrated with all the interruptions. Meanwhile, Kaoru's bird comment finally clicked on Sano and he was about to argue that he did not look like a chicken but Chou began explaining himself again, cutting Sano off.

"What I mean is, I hired those guys to attack rooster-head and the boy samurai to test their skills and give me reason to arrest the assassins. I got two jobs done at once. Rooster-head packaged them up nicely for me and I got to see the two of them fight. Bad guys locked away, fighting ability verified, mission accomplished. By the way" Chou turned his one eyed look to Sano. "That was pretty damn impressive." Sano started bragging to Chou while Megumi and the others sat trying to figure something out that seemed to be eluding them all.

"Wait a minute You hired those guys to kill them?" Chou nodded in response to Megumi's question and then shrugged.

"Yeah, so what?"

"What if the assassins had succeeded?" A general hush fell over the crowd as expectant gazes fell on Chou. "How could you know that Sanosuke would be able to defeat them?" After a moment a particularly evil smile came to Chou's face.

"We didn't. But if he couldn't defeat the guys then we definitely wouldn't want his help and I'd have one more murder to paste on the assassins so I could lock them up for life." Nobody could protect Chou from the furious rain of trays, cups, and bowls that resulted from his careless comments. Minutes later Tokio succeeded in quieting everyone down again. While Chou lay partially unconscious on the ground, Tokio took it upon herself to explain the rest of the situation.

"At any rate, the point Chou was trying to make before we got sidetracked is that we know the police will not be able to take you in as long as you fight convincingly. That's where the rest of you come in." There was a long pause as everyone sat in quiet wonder, not daring to guess what Tokio had in mind. "Himura-san. You said you were interested in helping. While you cannot go with us on the mission, there is one thing that you can do to help insure our success Some people in the underworld know of the man Zanza fought and lost to. They know that Zanza changed his ways and lived differently after the fight. Some also know the identity of the man he fought. The Hitokiri Battousai." Kenshin stared unflinchingly at Tokio. "People in the underworld never figured out why Zanza quit being a gangster after the fight. But details aren't that important. If Zanza and the Battousai were to fight once more, everyone would believe that Zanza had returned for good."

~//~

"For the sake of Japan?" Kaoru sat at Kenshin's side quietly urging him not to listen to Tokio, but it was obvious that the former rurouni was seriously considering her proposition.

"Yes Himura-san. We wouldn't ask you to do such a thing if there were not so much riding on the success of this mission." Kenshin turned to Sanosuke, trying to read the emotions crossing his friend's face.

"Me fight Kenshin again?"

"It's ridiculous Sano, don't do it." Megumi tugged at his sleeve but the former gangster ignored her, turning his gaze instead toward his red haired friend. Their eyes locked for a moment but then Sano looked away, instantly interested in the empty tray in front of him.

"Kuso, that's pretty damn awkward Tokio." Glancing up from the tray, Sanosuke found Tokio watching him intently. "I think I might have to start calling you by your family name Saitoh Tokio."

"Will you do it Sagara-san?" Tokio was all business.

"What do you think, Kenshin?" Sano desperately needed to know what his friend was thinking. Kenshin paused, collecting his thoughts.

"I can see how the fight may make your story more credible. demo I'd really rather not have to fight you ever again Sanosuke. But I guess I'll agree with whatever you decide." Kenshin sounded uncertain.

"It's not a real fight Himura-san. The two of you can work out anything you wish as long as it 'looks' realistic."

"Let's do it Kenshin." Sano broke the long moment of silence that was threatening to overtake them. He gave his friend a confident smile. "I think the two of us could put on a convincing show." Kaoru and Megumi both scowled.

"Alright Sano." Kenshin's violet eyes met Sano's brown as he nodded his agreement. Tokio and Chou both exhaled in relief. Apparently this part of the plan had caused them the most concern.

"What about me Tokio-san?" Tokio and Chou turned back to the young samurai while Megumi and Kaoru started arguing with Sano and Kenshin.

"If you're willing, we're going to insert you into the prison as a special prison guard and escort. Unlike Himura-san, you should not be easily recognizable to the prisoners, Myoujin-san."

"Great! That way I can keep an eye on rooster-head when he's in the prison!" Yahiko punched his hands together in excitement.

"Big talk Yahiko." Sanosuke scoffed, ignoring Megumi's irate questions. "Who's going to keep an eye on you?" A meaningful glance passed between Aoshi and Tokio.

"I am." The former okashira of the Oniwabanshu was well known for getting to the point.

"Aoshi-sama??" Misao's shrill voice ripped through the other conversations. "But you can't go running off without me!"

"The prison is no place for women, Misao-chan." Misao turned to Tokio with a furious gleam in her eye.

"Don't you 'Misao-chan' me, Tokio-san! I'm the okashira of the Oniwabanshu! There's nothing that I can't handle!" Yahiko covered his face and shook his head in embarrassment.

"What I meant to say, Makimachi-san, is that the prison is for men only. There are no women in the prison so you can see how your presence would complicate matters." A gentle touch on her shoulder stopped Misao before she started ranting in response to Tokio's comments.

"Misao" Aoshi spoke quietly. "Some jobs are better suited to different individuals."

"But Aoshi-sama"

"I think my presence may help this mission to succeed, but I fear that if you were to follow, success would become more difficult if not impossible. I ask that you allow me to go and that you remain behind But, as my okashira, I will respect your wishes."

"Aoshi are you sure?"

"Positive."

"As the former okashira of the Oniwabanshu I'll respect your wishes. But Aoshi-sama If something bad happens because I'm not there, I'm going to kencho kick you into next year!" Misao clenched her fist in determination and Aoshi knew she'd make good on her threat. The corners of his lips turned up in his almost nonexistent smile.

"So it's settled then!" Yahiko barely contained his excitement. "When do we leave?"

"Tomorrow night Kenkaya Zanza will be arrested at Mr. Tani's mansion. Myoujin-san and Shinomori-san will be present in the guise of elite police officers. Himura Kenshin will arrive with the chief of police to stop Zanza and you two will be there as backup in case something goes wrong." Tokio turned from Yahiko and Aoshi and gave Sanosuke a meaningful look. "After that the dangerous criminal will be transported to Hokkaido. The arrangements will be made swiftly."

"So tomorrow night I get to beat up Mr. Tani? And then Kenshin and I are going to fight?" Tokio nodded in response to Sano's questions. "Sounds like getting arrested is going to be fun this time!"

"This time??" Megumi raised her eyebrow quizzically.

"Oops. I mean" Sano shook his head and then grinned stupidly at her. "Never mind."

"How many times have you been arrested?" His grin turned wicked.

"Just in Japan or total?"

"You're terrible!" Megumi smacked him and in response he laughed loud and easily. The tension that had been building in the room vanished. The others couldn't help but smile as Megumi and Sano started their usual bickering. Before they went too far, Sano put a stop to it by turning back to Tokio.

"So yeah if we're going to be trashing Mr. Tani's tomorrow night that doesn't leave us much time."

"For planning?" Tokio felt a wave of confidence wash over her. Up until that moment she wasn't sure if Sagara Sanosuke was going to be taking things seriously.

"No, for partying." Megumi put a hand to her forehead in frustration. The false wave of confidence continued on past Tokio, mocking her as it went by. Chou shook his head in silent wonder and turned to Tokio with a sort of "I told you so" look. He'd warned her that Sagara Sanosuke wouldn't deal with things in a serious way. Tokio sighed.

"We thought you might want to unwind after all this talk. That's why I had Aoshi-san and Misao-chan pick up the sake. We have some ohagi in the kitchen as well."

"Great, we'll have to throw a big party tonight!" Sanosuke punched into the air happily.

"A party?" Megumi eyed Sano skeptically.

"Yeah, you know. A party. You drink and eat and have fun and stuff." Sanosuke teasingly explained the principle to the lady doctor.

"I know what a party is dummy." To say that Megumi was exasperated would have been an understatement. It was a forced exasperation though. As she continued to speak her harsh exterior softened. "After everything you've just heard, you want to throw a party and get drunk? This is serious 'stuff' rooster-head..." Megumi's lower lip quivered. She got to her feet unsteadily. "Can I talk to you alone?" Megumi turned and walked out of the room without waiting for his response. Sano got to his feet, feeling everyone's eyes on him. He turned to regard his friends and then shrugged.

"We'll be right back."

~//~

"What is it Fox?" Megumi had her back to him as he walked into the room they'd been hiding in earlier. It took him a moment to realize that she was shaking. Tentatively, Sano reached out his hand and lightly touched her quivering shoulder. "Hey Megumi what's wrong?"

"Chikusho Sanosuke" She was crying and Sano didn't know why. He gently turned her around so he could see her face. Tears streaked down her cheeks and Sano felt a twinge of pain in his heart. _I've made her cry again haven't I?_

"Megumi?" She brushed the tears from her face, trying to hide the fact that she was crying. By sheer force of will she stopped the tears from falling.

"You must think I'm pathetic."

"No Megumi, I" He tried to reason with her gently, but she would have none of it.

"Don't lie Sanosuke Ever since you got back all I've seemed to do is cry. It's just that it's just that" Megumi searched for the words. "I don't want you to leave again. Listening to you talk like you don't even care at all that you're going into danger I just can't handle it. You just got back to Japan, and for the first time in our lives the two of us can actually be together." Megumi met Sano's warm brown gaze. "But you're willing to forget all that and run off to some godforsaken prison full of people who will probably try and kill you?" Megumi's eyes flashed and then she stared at the floor, unable to meet his intense gaze any longer. "What about me Sano What about us?"

"Damn it Megumi" Sano worked his jaw. "You know I care about you" Tenderly he brushed a stray strand of hair from her face and their eyes locked together again. "You know I wouldn't be leaving if some part of me didn't know that I have to. This might be my chance to prove to the world that I'm useful. If I try and back out of this I know Saitoh will find some way to make my life a living hell." He smiled ironically. "And besides, it sounds like they really need my help."

But Sanosuke"

"No 'buts' Megumi. There's no need for you to worry about me. There's not a man on the face of this planet that I'm afraid of. I'll take care of this little problem and then I'll be back. And when I come back Megumi" Sano leaned in close enough that he could smell the scent of her hair. "I promise" Gently he turned her face up to his. "I'll never leave you again." Sano sealed his vow with a passionate kiss. Megumi released her frustrations, feeling Sano's strength comfort her and in that moment she knew that if he had ever made a promise he intended to keep, this was it.

~//~

"Hey Sano!" Yahiko rounded the corner and stopped dead in his tracks. "AHHHH!" _Every day of training for the last five years might have been to help me survive THIS moment!_ The thought burst into Myoujin Yahiko's mind as he witnessed the site before him. Megumi and Sanosuke were locked together but instantly pulled apart as he blundered into their room. This time, Yahiko was more prepared. He turned and ran like he'd never run in his life. An enraged rooster was only moments behind, tearing up the floor in his pursuit. A yelled apology was all Yahiko managed but he knew Sano didn't hear him over his own string of curses. The two raced past the room where everyone was waiting and out of the house. Once they were in the yard, Yahiko used his momentum and years of training to leap over the front gate. His foot touched briefly on the shingled roof and then he pushed off, sailing out into the street. He barely touched back to the ground before he sprinted off toward town. Sano considered running straight through the front gate but restrained himself, barely.

"DAMN YOU YAHIKO! YOU LITTLE PERVERT!" The young swordsman had escaped his wrath.

"Oro?" Sano whirled and found Kenshin standing in the door staring at him wide-eyed.

"Kenshin! Yahiko um" Sano pointed absently in the direction Yahiko had disappeared. _Kuso, now I feel stupid._ "Never mind." He stuck his hands in his pockets and walked over to his friend. "So what's up Kenshin?"

"Yahiko didn't tell you?"

"Uh nope. Tell me what?" Kenshin sighed.

"I'll explain it inside." Sano followed Kenshin into the room where the women were all chatting happily.

"Doesn't that sound wonderful Megumi?" Megumi had already returned to the room and Kaoru had just finishing explaining something to her.

"That sounds much better than sitting here in the dojo and watching them get drunk." Megumi covered her mouth with her hand and laughed. "Hohohohohoho!" Sano could almost see a suspicious pair of fox ears pop out of her head. He was glad though because it meant she was feeling more like herself.

"What's goin' on?" Sano eyed Megumi curiously but it was Misao who responded to his question.

"Since you guys are going to be leaving us behind while you go running off to Hokkaido, we decided that you'll have to make it up to us tonight!" The weasel girl sounded a little too excited for Sano's tastes.

"What?" Sano turned to Kenshin who lowered his head in resignation. A quick glance at Aoshi revealed a man lost in unpleasant thoughts.

"They want us to take them out to the summer festival tonight." The small voice belonged to Kenshin. It wouldn't be as fun as staying at the dojo, but it didn't sound that bad to Sano. Strangely enough, Kenshin and Aoshi looked like they absolutely dreading it.

"What's so bad about that Kenshin?" Sano whispered to his friend. Whether or not Misao had heard him, her next comment answered part of his question. She held her hands up to her face and her eyes sparkled in anticipation.

"Supposedly there's going to be western food and western DANCING tonight! I've always wanted to try western style dancing!" Kenshin and Aoshi gulped and Sano's jaw dropped.

"Ddancing?"

"There's only one more thing, Sanosuke-san." Tokio took this moment to drop the other problem on him. "I'm afraid you can't be running around in that recognizable outfit." Sano reached down and played with the edges of his new gi. "You're going to have to be 'undercover' tonight."

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Dancing? Yes that's right! I need one chapter of complete and utter romance/humor before we delve into serious action plot stuff! And what's this about being 'undercover'? What am I going to do to poor Sano now? Mwahaha! (just to let you all know, I'm doing some fanart of the next chapter. Hopefully the pic will be up with Chapter 14 at my site, www.kenkaya.com. Haven't been to my site yet? Stop by and take a look, you won't regret it! Sign the guestbook while you're there! *grin*) As always, I'd LOVE some feedback. I don't care if you're already reviewed, review again please! *begs shamelessly* The more responses I get, the faster I edit my chapters. *wicked grin* 


	15. Chapter 14: A Night to Remember

Author: Arashi

Website: www.kenkaya.com (if you haven't been there, go... there's a whole slew of art for this chapter)

Beta Reader: Karina Kineshi (thank you so much for your time and super helpful suggestions!!)

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

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**Chapter 14: A Night to Remember**

"You can't be serious!" Tokio didn't bother replying to Sanosuke's outburst. Instead, she took the outfit from Chou and set it on the floor in front of the ex-gangster with finality. She nodded her thanks to her fellow agent for picking the outfit up from her house and then she turned back to Sano.

"We use these a lot for undercover work and meetings with western officials." Tokio informed him casually. Sano stared in horror at the clothes arrayed in front of him: A black suit coat, matching black pants, white shirt, and a black tie. "Even Chou wears western suits." Tokio eyed the flamboyantly dressed agent at her side. "On occasion." Chou snorted.

"It ain't fun, rooster boy." Chou glanced at the black suit disdainfully. "Them ties choke the life out of ya." Everyone quickly realized that Chou's comments weren't helping matters. Sano looked like he was about ready to bolt.

"I'm not wearing a suit! I don't wanna go out tonight! I'm leaving!" Each comment was coupled with a frantic gesture that climaxed with him turning on his heels.

"Would you relax rooster-head?" Megumi grabbed the tail of Sano's gi as he started heading for the door. "It's not going to hurt you to wear a suit!"

"Lemme go Fox!" Megumi had about all she could stand of Sano's whining. In a flash she grabbed one of his ears and pulled down hard.

"Itai!" Sano stooped, trying to alleviate the agony by following Megumi's hand.

"I'll take care of this moron, Tokio-san." Megumi bent down to collect the articles of clothing, causing Sano to bend over farther and cry out in pain a second time. The others watched in embarrassment or amusement as Megumi hauled Sano out of the room and down the hall.

Anxious chattering ensued as Kaoru and Misao started making their plans. Aoshi sat in silence, contemplating his fate. Kenshin was forced to reply to all of Kaoru's questions. "Doesn't that sound fun Kenshin? Won't that be lovely Kenshin? Isn't this exciting Kenshin?" It was like she'd never gone on a date with him or something. Kenshin realized that things had been different since Kenji came into their lives, but still. _We do plenty of romantic things._ Kenshin mused to himself as he fell into a pattern of head nods and simple affirmative answers.

In the other room, Megumi stuffed the pile of clothing into Sano's unwilling hands and pushed him in the direction of the dressing screen. Sano walked like he was on the way to his own execution. He turned around once before disappearing behind the screen, giving her the most pitiful look she had ever seen. It was to no avail. Megumi put her hands on her hips and glared at him, causing Sano to jump behind the screen for cover. He began muttering quietly to himself as he took off his gi and hung it over the dressing screen.

Megumi stood waiting impatiently but when the white gi was draped over the screen her mind began to wander. _I wish that screen wasn't in the way so I could watch him undress._ A faint blush crept to her face the minute the thought popped into her head. It bothered her that Sano could throw off her senses so much. Ever since he'd returned to Japan she'd felt different around him and now that they'd worked things out, she found herself longing to be near him. _Get a grip Megumi._ She commanded herself. _You're going to have to let him go soon anyway at least for a little while._

"Hey Fox?" A shirtless Sano peeked around the dressing screen meekly. "Um this is sorta embarrassing but I can't get my pants undone." Megumi's face went from a light shade of pink to pale white.

"Y Your pants?" Sano nodded and stepped around the dressing screen, apparently unaware of the thoughts that were running through Megumi's mind.

"I tied them too damn tight after the whole uh... incident." He, of course, meant when Yahiko had interrupted the two of them. Megumi started blushing, bringing her pale face back to a more natural color. Sano held up his bandaged right hand and pointed at it. "I can't get the knot untied with my hand all messed up." As Sano walked toward her he unwound the bandages from around his waist, revealing his well-muscled abdomen. "Do ya think you can untie it for me?" A sly smile spread itself across his rugged features. "I know how good you are with your hands and all."

"Baka" It was a weak retort but it was all Megumi could manage at that moment. Without making eye contact she reached out and found the tight knot that was causing Sano so much trouble. Staring at his well-defined abs didn't help her keep her mind from wandering. Megumi had no difficulty untying the knot and then she took a step away from Sano trying to fight the feelings that arose from such close proximity to the half naked man. _He had a nice build before, but these past five years have done wonders for his body._ Megumi was blushing again; she could feel it.

"Thanks Fox." Sano smiled disarmingly at her and Megumi quickly wondered if he was going out of his way to drive her crazy.

"Get over there and get changed" Megumi pointed at the dressing screen, half hoping that he'd listen to her. The other half of Megumi didn't want Sano to go anywhere. Sano loosened his pants so they hung temptingly low on his hips.

"Wouldn't you rather I go out like this tonight?" Sano spoke so casually that Megumi almost didn't believe what she'd heard.

"Chikusho Sano I I" Megumi realized she was stammering like a fool. "NO I would not rather you go out like that!" She pointed at him accusingly as he continued posing temptingly with that smug expression of his. "Every woman in Tokyo would be hounding after you!" Apparently, Sano had expected this exact reaction from Megumi. Megumi, on the other hand, slapped her hand over her mouth, feeling even more foolish for adding to his already healthy ego. He took a step towards her, dangerously closing the distance between them.

"We could just stay here then." _It's amazing how his voice can range from a rough growl to a tantalizing purr._ Megumi thought and then shook her head in an attempt to clear her mind. She knew Sano was doing everything in his power to lure her in and she was almost falling for it. _What is he up to? _The answer suddenly struck her as she glanced around the room trying not to pay any attention to the half naked man who was trying and succeeding in turning her on. _The SUIT!_

"Kuso rooster-head! Get over there and get changed!! We're going OUT tonight!!!"

Crestfallen, Sanosuke's shoulders slumped. _Damn, I was so close._

~//~

"We're here!" Yahiko walked into the room and made his announcement happily. Tsubame was at his side wearing her cute western working outfit and a smile. Kenshin, Kaoru, Aoshi, Misao, and Tokio greeted the two of them. "So where's Sano?" Yahiko glanced around the room.

"Changing." Kaoru informed him. Yahiko and Tsubame sat down on the floor next to their friends and Misao and Tsubame immediately began catching up on old times. Kaoru joined in the girl talk, leaving the three men alone to discuss their predicament.

"Oi Kenshin Do you know how to dance western style?" Yahiko leaned close to the red haired man. Kenshin shook his head, staring at the floor the whole time.

"I do" It was a short, simple comment but it totally got Yahiko and Kenshin's attention.

"Really Aoshi?" The man nodded impassively in response to Yahiko's question.

"Please explain it to us Aoshi." Kenshin didn't want to beg, but the possibility that he might not have to make a total fool of himself was too good to pass up.

"It's not pleasant." If they hadn't been worried before they would have been after Aoshi made this straightforward comment. "You hold your hands like this." Aoshi demonstrated by pretending that he was wrapping his arm around someone's waist with one arm and holding their hand up with the other. He looked like he was showing one of the forms for a strange martial arts style. Kenshin and Yahiko mimicked him until they heard Misao, Kaoru, and Tsubame giggling. All three of the men dropped their hands out of the air and while Yahiko and Kenshin looked around in embarrassment, Aoshi picked up his tea and took a sip.

Everyone's attention turned to the door as Megumi stepped inside and cleared her throat. "Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you Sagara Sanosuke!" She stepped aside and indicated the open doorway with her hands. Kaoru, Misao, and Tsubame all started cheering but stopped after a moment when Sano didn't make his appearance. "Get in here rooster-head." Megumi hissed.

"I don't wanna." The unhappy voice came from the hallway.

"Come on Sanosuke!" Kaoru encouraged him. She, Misao, and even Tsubame were intrigued by the idea of Sano in a western suit. An anguished sigh heralded the ex-gangsters appearance. Shocked silence and collective jaw dropping followed.

"Holy shit!!" Yahiko was the first to regain enough composure to manage his crude expletive.

"Rooster-head looks GOOD!" Misao was on her feet in an instant. Even with shoulders slumped and hands in his pockets, the former gangster and freeloader cut a dashing figure in the black western suit. Megumi had forced him to remove his headband and straighten up his hair, along with buttoning up the shirt and coat and actually wearing the tie. "Stand up straight man! Let us see how you really look!" Aoshi eyed Misao in silence while she and the other girls watched Sano with giddy anticipation. Kenshin and Yahiko noticed the strange phenomenon as well.

When Sano slowly pulled his hands out of his pockets and straightened up, the women all sighed contentedly. "Western suits are SUGOI!" Kaoru's eyes twinkled.

"They even make rooster-head look good!" Misao's eyes were also sparkling as she turned back to Aoshi. "You brought your suit didn't you?" The former okashira of the Oniwabanshu nodded impassively.

"Hai..."

"Wear it tonight Aoshi-sama! Won't that be wonderful?" Aoshi didn't bother replying as he got to his feet and exited the room with an excited weasel at his heels.

Meanwhile, Sano was taking the only enjoyment he could get out of being forced to wear a western suit. He took pleasure in the looks on his female friends' faces as Tsubame and Kaoru approached him hesitantly. "Um" Tsubame looked particularly embarrassed. "You look really really nice Sanosuke-san."

"Turn around Sanosuke." Sano could see the amusement in Kaoru's eyes. Sano's smug look crept back onto his face, as he turned around nice and slow. He paused with his back to them and turned his head, posing casually. Tsubame and Kaoru both giggled as they watched Sano model the western suit. He continued rotating after a moment and as he came around he caught Megumi's eyes. Sano felt like a piece of meat as Megumi's warm brown eyes traced up and down his frame. _A very willing piece of meat..._

"Careful ladies, I'm afraid the fox doesn't like to share!" Sano held up his hands warding the other two women away jokingly. Megumi awarded him a halfhearted smack for his comment while Tsubame and Kaoru laughed lightly.

"What the hell's going on Kenshin?" Yahiko turned to the man he had always turned to for help and advice. The former rurouni's large eyed stare didn't comfort him.

"Oro" _That's all he can say at a time like this?_ Yahiko got to his feet in disgust and marched over to Tokio, doing his best to ignore everyone else. _I'll teach that rooster a lesson for distracting MY woman! _Yahiko dropped to his knees in front of Saitoh's wife and bowed low, touching his forehead on the floor in submission.

"Tokio-san, would you please let me borrow one of your western suits tonight?" Tokio and Chou both blinked in astonishment. Tsubame's well-trained ear picked up on Yahiko's question and she was at his side in an instant, totally forgetting about Sanosuke.

"Really Yahiko-kun? You want to wear a western suit?" Yahiko looked up at her, his face blushing slightly as he nodded.

"Uh yeah."

"That's so wonderful! I think tonight will be really special!" Tsubame practically jumped for joy. Tokio turned to Chou who shrugged and got to his feet to go retrieve another western suit from their collection.

"Uh Tokio-dono?" Tokio and Chou both turned toward the legendary manslayer as he clapped his hands together in front of his face respectfully. "Would you please get me one as well?"

~//~

Aoshi watched the others in silent and concealed amusement. Kenshin and Yahiko struggled into the white dress shirts and fumbled with the buttons for a moment before figuring out how they worked. Sano leaned against the wall casually, offering the two helpful suggestions. The women were all waiting for them back in the other room and Aoshi could only imagine what they were all talking about.

Yahiko pulled on the black suit coat and then picked up the tie, eyeing it as if it were a dead animal. After a moment he put it around his neck and tied it the same way he would tie the belt of his practice uniform. Sano laughed and Aoshi couldn't help but smile to himself. The look on Yahiko's face was priceless.

"Chikusho! How the hell am I supposed to know how to tie these stupid things?" Sano walked over to the young swordsman and pulled his hands out of his pockets. Without a word he untied Yahiko's tie and flipped up the collar of his white shirt. He straightened out the tie around Yahiko's neck and pulled it so that both sides were the proper lengths. Aoshi's eyebrow rose slightly as he watched the practiced motions of the former gangster. When he was finished, Yahiko's tie was perfect and the young swordsman was impressed. "Whoa, thanks how did you learn how to do that Sanosuke?"

Sano slid his hands into his pockets again. "It's not hard to figure out if you try." He sounded nonchalant enough but Aoshi detected some hidden depth to his words. His motions were too practiced to simply be something he 'figured out'.

"Ororororo Sano can you tie mine too?" Kenshin had succeeded in making a bigger mess than Yahiko. Sano chuckled and headed toward his red-haired friend.

"Sure Kenshin."

~//~

By this time, the younger children had gotten tired of playing outside. Outa, Kenji, Tsuyoshi and the two young swordsmen Eiji and Yutarou were back inside the room with the women and Chou.

"How would you two like to spend the night at Tsuyoshi's house?" Kaoru ruffled Outa's hair while Kenji crawled onto her lap.

"Really? Can we??" Outa didn't bother hiding his excitement.

"You bet! We're going out tonight and I don't want to leave you here by yourselves." Kenji seemed hesitant.

"I wanna go with you mommy!" Kaoru chuckled and bounced Kenji lightly with her knees.

"Mommy's going to be staying out late tonight Kenji. Aren't you sleepy?" Kaoru mimed an exaggerated yawn. "Mommy's already sleepy." Kenji tried to fight it but he couldn't keep himself from yawning. Kaoru laughed and gently kissed the top of her son's head. "You'll have fun at Tsuyoshi's house." This time, Kenji didn't object.

"Hey everybody." Sano stepped into the room and drew everyone's attention. "We're all dressed." He stepped to the side revealing Yahiko, Kenshin, and Aoshi all dressed in their black western suits. Kenji practically got tossed across the room as Kaoru jumped to her feet and ran to her husband. Misao was at Aoshi side a moment later while Tsubame timidly approached Yahiko. The women were in awe and expressed their pleasure to their respective men.

"Oh Kenshin you look sooooooo wonderful!" Kaoru wrapped her hands around her husband's neck and kissed him lightly on the lips. When she remembered they weren't alone she immediately blushed. Even married, it was inappropriate to publicly display this sort of affection. Kenshin didn't seem to mind at all.

"You look the BEST Aoshi-sama!" Misao jumped for joy next to the tall man. Aoshi didn't reply and instead he busied himself with straightening up his already immaculate tie.

"Yahiko, you look really nice in that suit I like it." Tsubame blushed while Yahiko glanced away from her smiling face and scratched the back of his head.

"Well, rooster-head" Megumi approached Sanosuke and brushed an imaginary piece of lint off one of his broad shoulders. "You look alright I guess." One of Sano's eyebrows rose in disbelief.

"That's it? That's all you have to say?"

"Well to make it perfect you need a hair cut." Megumi reached up and twirled a strand of his long brown hair with her delicate fingers. "And you need to get rid of that silly beard." Sano rubbed his jaw, suddenly reminded of the fact that he hadn't shaved in a long time.

"I haven't felt like getting my hair or beard cut these last few months" Sano looked thoughtful for half a heartbeat and then he winked at Megumi. "But for you fox, I'll do anything."

"Hold on Sagara-san." Tokio called out to them before Megumi and Sano could exit the room. Sano stopped and made his way over to Saitoh's wife. "I'm afraid I can't allow you to cut your hair tonight." Megumi looked upset.

"But why?"

"He's less recognizable with the longer hair and the beard. Coupled with the suit, no one should be able to recognize him." Megumi sighed and Sano rested his hand on her shoulder gently. Tokio continued after a brief pause. "But tomorrow he'll need that hair cut." Megumi smirked.

"Oh well, I guess I'll just have to wait one more day to get you cleaned up." Sano chuckled and plopped down on the floor next to Tokio.

"Now that that's settled. It's time to relax a bit!" Sano took the tray of sake sitting next to Tokio and moved it directly in front of himself. He opened a bottle and took a long drink. "Thanks for the sake Tokio."

"It's the least I could do for you Sagara-san." Tokio glanced at the blonde agent at her side. "Well, it seems everything is settled here. Chou and I will be leaving." Tokio rose to her feet. "We'll be back tomorrow to brief you on everything you'll need to know to start off this mission. Once again, I cannot thank you enough for agreeing to assist us." Sano waved her thanks away with his hand.

"Yeah yeah It's not like you guys left me any choice. Besides, if someone is trying to mess with Japan they have to go through us first."

Tokio and Chou collected the children and left after saying their goodbyes. As the two of them walked the children back to Tokio's house the blonde haired Keishichou agent stretched casually and regarded her with his trademark one-eyed look. "You want me to keep an eye on them right?"

"Of course."

~//~

The sun set long before the Kenshin-gumi arrived at the summer festival. Sano had insisted that they start out the night by dusting off a few bottles of sake. No one had had the heart to argue with him, whether they joined in the drinking or not. After a few rounds of toasting Sanosuke's return the ex-gangster, the young swordsman, the lady doctor, the current okashira of the Oniwabanshu, the head instructor of the Kamiya Kasshin dojo, and the former rurouni were all enjoying themselves immensely. Uncomfortable ties forgotten, Sanosuke, Yahiko, and Kenshin were finally ready to hit the town, hoping they could show their women a good time. Aoshi had remained quite and reserved throughout the pre-festival party but the former okashira of the Oniwabanshu was determined to show a certain young woman that even he was capable of enjoying himself, from time to time. Confident in the knowledge that he alone knew how to dance western style, Aoshi made his way to the festival with his close friends around him and his closest friend beside him.

"I've always wanted to try western dancing!" Misao's eyes sparkled from the moonlight and the colorful lanterns lining the streets. She turned and smiled up at Aoshi.

"And western food!" Kaoru chimed in happily from where she walked, arm in arm with Kenshin.

"Ya think they sell sake around here anywhere's?" Sano had his arm draped around Megumi's shoulders and it was hard to tell if it was affection or simply a way to keep himself walking straight. The look on Megumi's face indicated the answer to that question without anyone actually having to ask.

"No more drinking rooster-head. I'm not going to carry you back to the dojo!"

"Awww, c'mon fox." The others laughed or smiled while Sano begged Megumi to let him buy more sake. Their 'discussion' continued until they arrived in the midst of the summer festivities.

"Oh Kenshin, I see a dessert booth!" Kaoru dragged her husband over to a small stand on the side of the street. The rest of the group followed slowly as everyone took in the sights and the smells. The streets were packed with people and many vendors had opened up booths and small shops selling everything from food to souvenirs. The western theme prevailed and many signs advertised 'Western Food' or 'Western Apparel'. Quite a few of the people in the crowd appeared to be foreigners and this added to the exotic nature of the festival.

As Sano and Megumi followed the others to the dessert stand, Sanosuke noticed a stand adjacent to it that drew his attention much more than food. "Beer!" Sano steered Megumi away from the others.

"Beer?" Megumi inquired. "Isn't that some kind of foreign alcoholic beverage?" Sano laughed.

"Yup."

"I thought I told you no more drinking."

"But I haven't had beer in ages!" It had only been a month or two, but that was one of the details Megumi didn't need to know. She sighed and gave up, allowing Sano to order two mugs of the frothy amber liquid. Sano handed her one of them and then held his up, saluting her. Then he said something Megumi didn't understand, clinked his mug against hers, and downed the contents in one large gulp. As he wiped his mouth with the back of his bandaged right hand, Megumi eyed him suspiciously.

"What was that?" She asked after she had sampled the beer.

"What was what?" Sano was as oblivious as usual.

"What you just said. Was that some strange drunkard talk from Mongolia?" Sano laughed easily.

"No, not Mongolia. It's English for 'cheers'."

"English?" Before Sano could reply two foreign men next to them at the beer stand raised their mugs and repeated the strange word while saluting Sano. He nodded back and said the word a second time, raising his empty glass. He was about to turn his attention back to Megumi but the men approached and started speaking to Sanosuke in a language Megumi could not fathom. Sano stammered a moment and then replied in the same language. After a minute of conversation, Sano pointed off down the street and explained something to the two men. They smiled, tipped their hats to Megumi, and disappeared into the crowd.

"What was that all about Sano? I couldn't understand a word you said to them!"

"More of that English stuff" He grinned at her. "I think they were asking directions to one of the bars in the area I _think_ I told them where to go." He snickered. "Not that it matters."

"When did you learn how to speak English?" Sano rolled his eyes and put his arm back around her shoulders.

"Why is it that none of you even stops to consider that I might have done something other than drink, gamble, and get in fights for the past five years?" Megumi blinked.

"Because we _know_ you." Sano pulled his arm off her shoulder and pretended to be offended. "So answer my question already! When and why did you learn to speak English?"

"Well" Sano grinned mischievously and put his arm around her shoulders once again as he led her through the crowd and back to their friends. "After a few months of not being able to understand people at the gambling parlors, I decided it would be in my best interest to learn." Megumi scoffed and muttered under her breath while Sano laughed.

"What's so funny Sano?" Yahiko looked over at his friend when Sano and Megumi rejoined the group.

"The fox, of course!" Megumi slid out from under Sano's arm and walked over to Kaoru and Misao, pointedly ignoring the ex-gangster.

After the women had their fill of the western desserts the group was on the move again, unconsciously heading toward the sound of music. They found an open plaza full of people laughing and dancing. The band was at one corner on a raised stage playing a slow, beautiful waltz.

"I've never heard anything like that before" Yahiko commented as they stood around the edge of plaza. Happy couples twirled by following the basic three-step pattern of the waltz. Many of the people appeared to be foreigners and even those who weren't were dressed in western clothing and appeared to know what they were doing.

"Doesn't it look fun Aoshi-sama?" Misao turned to the tall man at her side. "I think they call it a waltz or something like that right?" Aoshi nodded but was too busy studying the movements of the dancers to reply. He had some experience with western customs but every song was a little different and he wanted his timing to be exact when he 'performed' the dance.

"Do you want to try it dear?" Kaoru turned to her husband. Kenshin's eyes widened as she led him by the hand toward the dancing people.

"Oro"

"Come on Aoshi-sama! Let's go dance with Kenshin and Kaoru!" Misao gave Aoshi just as much choice as Kaoru had given Kenshin. Tsubame turned to Yahiko shyly. They smiled at each other, but the young girl didn't say anything.

"You want to do it too don't you?" Yahiko asked, reading her mind easily. Tsubame's face lit up like one of the colorful lanterns hanging around the plaza.

"Can we?" Yahiko shook his head.

"I would but right now I'm feeling kinda dizzy from all the sake we drank earlier. Maybe we'll try in a bit. Besides, I want to watch them make fools of themselves first." Yahiko paused and looked around, noticing the absence of part of their group. "Hey, where'd rooster-head and the fox go?" Someone smacked Yahiko upside his head.

"Oi, who you calling a rooster?"

"Don't call me a fox!" Both Megumi and Sanosuke made their comments at the same moment, and Yahiko wasn't entirely sure who had actually hit him.

"Oh, there you two are" He rubbed the back of his head, not overly thrilled by their sudden reappearance.

"Sorry for disappearing like that Rooster-head found another beer stand." Megumi shook her head in annoyance. Ignoring her, the tall man glanced around.

"Where's everybody else?" Yahiko pointed toward the group of dancers and Sanosuke and Megumi easily spotted Kenshin, Kaoru, Aoshi, and Misao. Kenshin had a look of total and utter confusion on his face as he tried to remember what Aoshi had told him to do with his hands. Kaoru took control and placed them in their proper locations. It seemed the wife was a quicker study than her husband. As they started dancing, Sanosuke, Megumi, Yahiko, and Tsubame could hear Kenshin's comment as though he were standing right next to them.

"Oro."

Meanwhile, Aoshi stepped up to Misao and bowed slightly. With his usual serious expression he approached her and placed one hand around her waist while taking one of her hands in the other. There was a certain fluidity and grace in the way Aoshi slid into the waltz, but there was something strange about it.

"I can't tell if Aoshi's about to dance or start practicing some crazy form of martial arts." Yahiko leaned over to Sanosuke as he made the comment. Sanosuke agreed with the young swordsman's observation. As Aoshi and Misao started dancing the ex-gangster made his own comment on the matter.

"His footwork is perfect, but the man looks like he's on a battlefield not a dance floor." The look of concentration plastered to Aoshi's face fit Sanosuke's description perfectly.

"You're right!" Yahiko laughed. "I swear he had the same look on his face when he and Kenshin fought for the first time!" Yahiko and Sanosuke both started snickering but when they saw Kenshin and Kaoru dance by they broke out into full-fledged laughter. Kaoru pulled him along doing her best to imitate the others around them, but the poor man had no idea what he was doing.

"Kenshin no baka! That's my foot!" Kaoru started chewing Kenshin out and Yahiko turned to grin at Sano.

"Kenshin may have a lot of coordination when he's got a sword in his hand" The young swordsman started the comment and Sanosuke finished it.

"But without it, he's hopeless." When Kaoru grabbed Kenshin and started dragging him along, Yahiko and Sanosuke started snickering again.

"You two are being rude." Megumi tossed her long, black hair over her shoulder. "I don't see either of you rushing out there to dance. At least Aoshi-san is attempting to show Misao a good time, and Ken-san isn't running away and hiding." Sano would have needed to finish off another twenty mugs of beer for him to miss the tone in Megumi's voice and the implied message behind it.

"Come on Fox." Sano grabbed Megumi by the hand and started out onto the dance floor. "You too Yahiko, grab your girl already"

"What? I don't want to..." Yahiko started to yell at Sanosuke but the look on Tsubame's face made him change his mind. He sighed and led her out after Megumi and Sanosuke. Aoshi and Misao were still dancing and while the former okashira had a serious look on his face, the look on Misao's face was one of sheer enjoyment. Sanosuke vaguely wondered if dancing with Aoshi was the most enjoyable thing she'd ever done with him. Kaoru had taken control of the waltz and she twirled Kenshin around once, causing him to lose his grip on her. He staggered back and ended up hitting what he thought was a wall in the middle of the dance floor.

"Chikusho Kenshin. Watch where you're going." It was Sano. Kenshin turned to look at his friend in surprise.

"Oh I'm sorry Sano. I didn't mean to bump into you." Sanosuke grinned at him.

"No problem. Just watch where you're dancing. Now, if you don't mind, Megumi and I were about to show you fools how to waltz." Kaoru was there to collect her husband and she shot Sano an angry look.

"I'd like to see you try." She taunted him. Sanosuke only smiled and slid Megumi's hand onto his shoulder.

"Try and keep up Fox." He said confidently and before she could reply he started off. "Here we go."

"Do you know what you're doing?" Megumi asked in astonishment as she tried to keep up.

"Absolutely. You seem to be forgetting my vast knowledge and experience in world customs."

"Sorry, I just can't picture you learning to dance in a foreign country." Sanosuke gave her a look and then he grinned.

"Yeah, I guess that is a little hard to believe. And since it is a long story, I'll just have to prove it to you that I know what I'm doing. Try and stay in step Megumi. One, two, three One, two three There now you're getting it!" Megumi and Sanosuke whirled off leaving Kenshin and Kaoru to stare after them in shock. Yahiko and Tsubame were about to attempt to dance but instead they just stood there with the other two watching Sano and Megumi.

"He's good" Yahiko muttered.

"I hate to admit it, but you're right Yahiko." Kaoru commented, not taking her eyes off Sano and Megumi. They waltzed right by Aoshi and Misao making it obvious how badly the two of them were dancing. Suddenly, Aoshi didn't appear to be enjoying himself at all. In contrast, Sanosuke had the biggest grin on his face. Megumi appeared to be a quick study and the others could hear her laughter as Sano twirled her around. When Sano and Megumi whirled by Aoshi and Misao the second time everyone could see that Aoshi wanted to stop dancing, though Misao seemed perfectly oblivious. Kaoru, Kenshin, and Yahiko all refrained from dancing, too embarrassed by their own ineptitude.

"I'm not giving that rooster-head anything to tease me about." Yahiko commented when Tsubame gave him a shy look that seemed to say she wanted to try dancing again. "No way I'm going to dance." He folded his arms resolutely.

"Kenshin, would you like to try again?" Kaoru asked her husband. Kenshin gave her a little smile trying to think of a good way to get out of it. Kaoru read his face perfectly and she looked away angrily. "Never mind!" Aoshi had finally broken away from Misao and he stalked over to them, his stoic expression back on his face. Misao followed behind, practically wailing.

"Aoshi-sama! Let's dance some more!" Aoshi didn't reply as he came to stand by the four on the sidelines. The men exchanged a glance and the same thought. Not one of them wanted to be made fun of by the dancing idiot.

"Dancing's for sissies anyways." Yahiko muttered as they all watched Sano and Megumi twirl by. As they turned, Sanosuke aimed a look back at the guys. His face said it all. _I'm better than you are! Haaa ha ha ha haa ha!_ Yahiko growled while Kenshin looked embarrassed and Aoshi stood emotionless. The dance finally finished and Sanosuke and Megumi came back over to the group. Sano didn't say anything but his look had already spoken more than enough.

"That was incredible." Kaoru admitted to Sanosuke. "Where'd you learn to dance like that?"

"England actually." The comment was short and to the point. The cocky grin said the rest.

"You're amazing Sano!" Misao piped in. "Do you want to dance one with me?" She looked hopeful. If anyone had been paying attention to Aoshi at that instant they might have seen something flash across his face before it resumed its normal look. His clenched fist told the rest of the story.

Tsubame stepped up timidly and asked in her quite voice. "Sanosuke-san, would you dance with me too?" Sano hadn't had time to reply to Misao before the young waitress had stepped forward. Her usual timidity and fear of asking people things was overcome by her desire to dance. Yahiko was floored.

"Tsubame!?" It was all he could manage to say to her. Sanosuke just held up his hands and smiled at Misao and Tsubame.

"Sorry ladies, I don't want the fox to get jealous." He was eating it up.

"What exactly is there to be jealous of might I ask?" Megumi looked sly. "If you two really want to dance with the big rooster, go right ahead. But I warn you..." She got quiet and whispered just loud enough so the entire group could hear. "His breath reeks of sake and beer." Misao and Tsubame were instantly turned off.

"Yuck. Thanks for warning us Megumi-san." Misao then turned to Aoshi and laced her arm through his. "Besides, I think Aoshi-sama is a great dancer." Aoshi didn't protest her arm though his. He didn't protest her comment. In fact, those who really knew Aoshi knew that he was suddenly very happy and agreeable.

"You really want to dance Tsubame?" Yahiko was still trying to figure out what to do to make her happy. She turned her beautiful hopeful smile back to him.

"Really? You'll dance with me?" Yahiko scratched the back of his head, looking from Tsubame to Sanosuke and then back to Tsubame.

"Aa." He took her by the hand and with a backward glance at a grinning Sano he headed out to the dance floor. Megumi eyed Sano and then playfully elbowed him in the gut. He grunted.

"Don't do that. All the spinning and the beer is getting to me."

"Leave Yahiko alone." Sano blinked at her innocently.

"What are you talking about?"

"You know what I'm talking about. Just leave Yahiko and Tsubame alone."

Sano looked like he was about to play dumb but a sharp look from Megumi cut it short. "Alright, I'll be good. No teasing, I promise." He held up an open hand and shook it in emphasis. A new song was just starting and Yahiko and Tsubame began their second attempt at Western dancing.

"Why don't we go back out there so you can show me some more of your _moves_?" Megumi asked Sano slyly, raising her eyebrows in emphasis as she said the word 'moves'. He grinned and the two of them walked, hand in hand, back onto the dance floor.

"Aoshi-sama?" Aoshi didn't need Misao to finish her question. Without a word he quietly led her back into the fray. Kenshin and Kaoru were suddenly left standing alone.

"Well dear?" Kaoru turned to him. Kenshin blinked ignorantly.

"Oro?"

"No playing dumb with me Kenshin, we're going back out there and enjoying ourselves. Come on." She hauled him back toward the dancers. When they made it out onto the floor Kenshin stood looking around in confusion once again. He took a moment and watched as their friends and the other people danced by. Kaoru put her hands on her hips angrily. "Kenshin, can you at least TRY it again?" Kenshin seemed to be thinking hard about something as he turned and gave Kaoru a searching glance. "What?" She asked him. He didn't reply except to step very close to her putting her hand on his shoulder and his on her waist. He gave her a particularly ravenous smile causing her to blush. The look he was giving her was one they usually reserved for the bedroom. "What are you up to?" She managed to ask as she giggled.

"Hold on tight." She blinked in surprise as he started them dancing. Before, Kaoru had to do everything in her power to keep him going but now the former rurouni was in charge and somehow in the last few minutes he had figured out everything you needed to know for proper western dancing. The song was quicker than the waltz and Kenshin spun and twirled Kaoru to the beat. As Megumi and Sanosuke danced by Kenshin heard his friend call out encouragement.

"You got it Kenshin!" He, of course, coupled the comment with a particularly impressive display on his and Megumi's part but Kaoru didn't care. She was enjoying the feel all women get when dancing with the man they love. Aoshi and Misao seemed to be faring better to the quicker dance as well. Yahiko and Tsubame were doing just fine. If Sanosuke hadn't been there to show off, the two of them probably would have impressed the others by how quickly they picked up western dancing. The four couples danced and whirled away the next few hours. By the time they decided to quit, the women were in a state of sheer bliss. Each of their men had become expert western dancers through the course of the night and try as they might, none of the men could deny the fact that they'd enjoyed themselves.

"Are you smiling Aoshi?" Kenshin grinned up at the taller man as they made their way through the streets. Aoshi tried to keep his emotions in check but somehow the corners of his mouth had turned up far enough to be noticed by others. Misao, of course, had been aware of his smile while they were dancing. He'd stopped trying to hide his smile from her years ago.

"Aa." Aoshi smiled over at the red-haired man who had turned his life around and then he looked back at the young woman bouncing along at his side.

"That was wonderful! And now, I think there's going to be fireworks!" Misao was even more excited than usual after the western dance. "Don't you just love fireworks Aoshi?"

"First, we should go find some food." Sanosuke commented as he loosened his tie and unbuttoned the top button of his white shirt. "All that dancing made me work up an appetite."

Everyone agreed and Kaoru happily led them to the dessert stand she thought was the best on their way through the first time. They were soon stuffing their faces with a variety of tasty foods. Stuffing, of course, being a relative term for each of them. Yahiko and Sanosuke were inhaling, Misao and Kaoru were pigging out, Kenshin, Megumi, and Tsubame were sampling, and Aoshi had one bite of a baked sweet potato that Misao swore was the best one she'd ever had in her life. Yahiko had to pause for a minute while he choked on some hastily swallowed food. Tsubame patted him on the back trying to dislodge whatever had gotten stuck. When he had started choking he had stepped back in surprise and bumped into Megumi causing her to drop her half eaten sweetened rice cake on the ground. She quickly bent over, picked it up, brushed off the obvious dirt, and with a sly grin turned and offered it to Sano. Sano ate it right out of her hand leaving a gooey mess on her fingers from all the other food he was already chewing.

While everyone ate and socialized, Megumi noticed an interesting occurrence. The buttons on Sanosuke's black suit coat were mysteriously unbuttoned. Every few moments after freeing himself from the confines of the coat, one of the buttons on his white shirt became unfastened as well. The tie disappeared before too much time had passed and miraculously appeared around Sano's forehead, tied just like his red headband. The change took place slowly enough that none of the other noticed, except Megumi. Of course, none of the others really cared. By this time, Megumi was enjoying herself too much to force Sano to keep himself presentable. _It's amazing he kept that suit on for as long as he did. Besides, we're through dancing and now it's time to relax and enjoy everyone's company._ Megumi watched Sano as he threw his arms around Kenshin and Yahiko, laughing and joking around with them. It was like old times again, only better.

~//~

A little while later, the group wandered into a clearing by the river to watch the fireworks. Sano took off his coat and laid it out on the grass for Megumi to sit on. He gave each of the guys an encouraging look and soon all three of them removed their coats and placed them on the grass with the same flair Sanosuke had used. Aoshi's large Cajun trench coat provided more cover than any of their suit coats and there was enough room for both Aoshi and Misao to sit together, as long as they sat close. The other guys didn't mind as they sat down in the damp grass next to their female companions. Each of the couples were far enough away from each other to have a little privacy while still being close enough that everyone could talk if they wanted to.

"You've picked up manners too?" Megumi smiled playfully at Sano. "This entire evening has been like a dream. If someone would have told me five years ago that you'd come back like this I would have laughed in their face." Before Megumi's imaginary fox ears made their appearance, Sano leaned over and pressed his lips against hers, effectively cutting off any further comments. He pulled away after a moment and smiled at her warmly. Megumi took a moment to recover and then her fox ears made their appearance. "Ok, maybe you really haven't picked up any manners." She pushed him away teasingly. "I don't know about other countries, but in Japan it's still considered inappropriate to do this sort of thing in public."

"Why do you think I pulled away?" The look Sano gave her made Megumi wish they really were alone. Sano spoke again, but this time Megumi didn't understand him. The foreign language rolled off his tongue like honey and though Megumi couldn't comprehend the words, she felt her face blushing at the message and the emotion it conveyed.

"What does that mean Sanosuke?" She was in awe, staring at the face of the man who seemed to have changed so much in one night. He reached out one of his rough, calloused hands and tenderly caressed her cheek. The touch of his capable hand served to remind Megumi that the man sitting beside her was truly the man she had met five years earlier.

"It means, 'you're beautiful'" Overhead, the first of the fireworks exploded in the night sky as Sanosuke leaned in to kiss a very willing Megumi yet again.

Kenshin and Kaoru were soon caught up in the romantic moment as well. The two of them lay back on the grass and Kaoru snuggled against her husband's chest. Kenshin put a protective arm around her, holding her close as they stared up into the sky watching the fireworks. Kenshin placed a loving kiss on the top of his wife's head and then stroked her hair tenderly.

Yahiko and Tsubame took things a little slower. At the age of fifteen, Yahiko was still not entirely sure how to act around Tsubame. He placed his coat on the grass as he'd seen the others doing, and then he'd plopped down a good foot and a half away from her. It was a gradual process, but one at a time, Tsubame and Yahiko inched closer to each other. Finally, Yahiko put his arm around her. _Sanosuke's probably going to tease me about this later._ Yahiko hazarded a glance over in Sano's direction and was relived to see that Sano wasn't paying attention to him at all. He and Megumi were cuddled against each other on their backs, staring up at the sky.

Meanwhile, Misao cheered every time a particularly large or loud firework exploded. Aoshi sat by her looking up at the sky on occasion. The rest of his time was spent staring straight ahead. Unbeknownst to most, Aoshi had amazing peripheral vision. He was watching Misao the entire time with the 'Aoshi smile' plastered to his face. Misao pointed up as a particularly large firework exploded in the sky. Aoshi followed her hand and watched the red lines trace through the air before dying out, leaving only a smoky outline. When Misao set her hand down, she 'accidentally' placed it right on Aoshi's hand. He looked down at their touching hands and then right into Misao's smiling face. Misao tightened her hand giving his a little squeeze and Aoshi pulled his hand around slowly, entwining her fingers with his own.

Kaoru and Kenshin were still snuggling when Kaoru turned to whisper a simple phrase in his ear. "I love you, Kenshin."

"And I love you, Kaoru." They snuggled together closer as Kenshin tenderly brushed her cheek with his hand.

Yahiko and Tsubame sat close, but the slight chill in the night air caused the young Akabeko waitress to shiver. At least that's what Yahiko thought. "Sit closer to me, Tsubame. I'll keep you warm." Tsubame gave Yahiko a shy smile as she inched even closer to the young swordsman.

"Thank you Yahiko-kun." She slowly and tentatively rested her head on his shoulder. Yahiko pulled her closer until there was no room left between the two of them. He gently rested his cheek on her head.

Misao edged a little closer to Aoshi. "Aren't the fireworks beautiful?" She asked him quietly as she watched the night sky. Aoshi wasn't looking at the fireworks when he replied in agreement.

"Absolutely beautiful"

Realization hit Megumi as she lay on the ground, nestled against Sanosuke for an hour as they watched the fireworks in silence. His warmth, his strength, the way he made her feel protected, the way he looked at her, the way he touched her, the way he kissed her Megumi loved each of these newer developments in their relationship. _In these last five years, he managed to grow up without changing the fundamental parts of his character that attracted me to him in the first place. I cared about this rooster-head five years ago but maybe I only thought I loved him The feeling I'm feeling right now is more than I ever felt before. Right now, there's not a doubt in my mind I love him._ A sudden urge overcame her senses and she knew she had to let him know what she was feeling.

The fireworks exploded above their heads in rapid succession as the grand finale began. Megumi stroked her finger over the muscles of Sano's chest as the last of the fireworks raced up to the sky. "I love you Sagara Sanosuke." With a loud boom, the last firework arched its way through the sky and trailed down toward the earth. There was no response from the ex-gangster and after the noise died down, Megumi realized why. His eyes were closed and he was snoring softly. A night of dancing, drinking, and sweeping Megumi off her feet had exhausted him. Megumi lowered her head to his chest and smiled wryly to herself. _Same old rooster-head_

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*wipes forehead* Phew! Chapter 14 took a little longer to edit than I had anticipated. I had to rewrite quite a few parts so I hope everything works out alright. There's a little bit of OOC-ness for some of the characters but this can all be attributed to the fact that five years have gone by. If Sano hasn't matured even a little in five years there would be something wrong. *grin* 

I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter of gushy romance and WAFFY-ness. Next up, the first part of the mission begins. It's time to get serious as Zanza and the Battousai face each other once again! Will everything go smoothly?

As always, looking for some constructive criticism and feedback. Please review and THEN go check out my website at www.kenkaya.com! Chapter 14 is being posted with the largest collection of artwork yet! Check it out, sign the guestbook, and then if you just happen to be an artist and you feel like contributing, please send me your pics! The guys in suits? C'mon... who could resist drawing that?

  



	16. Chapter 15: Prelude to a Battle

Author: Arashi (Arashi@kenkaya.com)

Website: www.kenkaya.com (centered around the fic)

Beta Reader: Karina Kineshi (thank you so much for your time and super helpful suggestions!!)

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

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Sorry about the long wait people. The last 3 weeks have been torture (as many of my fellow college students fully understand). Between finals, a small case of writers block, parties, and whatnot, it took me forever to finish this next chapter. Originally this was just supposed to be one chapter but I had to split it because it was too large to fit in one file of Adobe Pagemill. Hope you enjoy!

This double chapter is dedicated to the people who have taken the time to read and review this story. I especially want to thank Karina, M.Kasshoku, Omni82, Mir, and eri for reading, reviewing, supporting, encouraging, and/or inspiring me with your amazing works of Fanfiction. I think I've told you all how much I enjoy your fics, so let me just say "Keep up the great work! You've all thorougly entertained and excited me with your incredible stories!"

And now without further adieu...

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**Chapter 15: Prelude to a Battle**

"Wake up rooster-head." Sano's eyes flashed open. Megumi hovered over him shaking his shoulders gently.

_Damn, I must have fallen asleep. Megumi will be pissed if she finds out_

"I'm not sleeping Megumi I'm just thinking about you." He propped himself up with one arm and brought her face to his with the other, kissing her lightly on her lips. It wasn't until after he pulled apart that he realized he was in one of the rooms of Kenshin and Kaoru's house.

"Oh really?" Megumi's eyes twinkled in amusement. "You must have been thinking really hard" She pulled herself away and knelt beside his futon, straightening a few strands of her long, silky hair. Sano started to open his mouth to protest but quickly realized there was nothing to say. Megumi laughed lightly at his reaction. "You were thinking about me so much that you didn't even complain when Kenshin and Aoshi carried you here, huh?"

"Kuso" Sano scratched the back of his head and smiled at her weakly. "I'm sorry Fox that wasn't very romantic of me was it?"

"Nope not romantic, but not surprising either. You did have quite a bit to drink last night." Megumi slid closer to him and took his bandaged right hand in both of hers tenderly. Her teasing facial expression was replaced by the warm, compassionate, and caring look she'd starting giving him recently. "But it doesn't really matter. The important thing is I had a wonderful time with you last night. And there's something I wanted to tell you"

Someone in the hallway cleared his throat, killing the comment Megumi was about to make before it escaped her lips. "Are you two presentable?" It was Yahiko and for once, he did not come barreling around the corner into their room.

_Though his timing is still just as bad._

"Damn it Yahiko, what do you want!?" Exasperation sharpened the tone of Sanosuke's voice and its effect was not lost on the young swordsman.

"Chikusho Sanosuke, it's not my fault they keep sending me to talk to you two" Yahiko sounded appropriately penitent so Sano decided to spare his life. "Kaoru wanted me to tell you guys that Tae's here and she brought lunch from the Akabeko." They heard Yahiko stalk away muttering under his breath about never coming and telling them anything ever again. Sano couldn't help but smile to himself as Yahiko retreated but the amusement of the situation faded as he turned his attention back to Megumi. Gone was the intimate look and the hope of getting her to speak her mind disappeared with it.

_And I was really curious about what Megumi wanted to tell me_

"So what were you saying Megumi?" He tried to be gentle and even specifically used her real name in the hope that she would tell him what she was thinking. Instead, she smiled somewhat wistfully and got to her feet.

"It's nothing important rooster-head. Let's go eat."

~//~

"Good morning Sanosuke!" Kaoru greeted him cheerily as he followed Megumi into the dining room. Everyone was crowded around helping Tae and Tsubame distribute the lunch trays from the Akabeko.

"Look who finally crawled out of bed!"

Misao's mocking tone caused Sanosuke to scowl in her direction. "Mornin' to you too weasel girl"

"Don't call me weasel girl!" Misao fumed but quickly regained her composure after deciding to attack Sanosuke with words instead of kunai. "Besides, it's not morning anymore rooster-head! You slept right through that." Misao and Yahiko both snickered and exchanged a comment or two that Sano ignored.

"How are you feeling Sano?" Kenshin's knowing gaze seemed to penetrate straight through the taller man. Sano could sense the strength of his ken ki that had, up until this time, been somewhat concealed.

_He must be mentally preparing himself for our battle tonight_

"I'm fine Kenshin." Sano felt his old confident smile turn the corners of his lips. "It'll take more than a few beers to mess me up. Sleep does the body good." He heard Megumi scoff but the woman refrained from making any comments.

"Glad to hear it. We were a little worried about you last night, that we were..." More giggling emanated from Misao and Yahiko's direction as Kenshin finished speaking.

Sano put his hand on his friend's shoulder reassuringly, ignoring the ninja girl and the young swordsman. "Relax Kenshin." He didn't realize how appropriate the comment was until he felt the bunched muscles of the former rurouni through his magenta gi.   
  
_Damn, Kenshin's tense_

Neither Sanosuke's touch nor the confident tone in his voice alleviated the stress he felt from the red haired man. "Chikusho Kenshin, what's up?"

"Ano There's something I want to talk to you about Sano" Kenshin gave him a nervous smile, miserably failing to hide the fact that there was something important he needed to say. "In private." The last part he added as an afterthought as he glanced around the room at everyone eating their lunches.

"You can have him when I'm through with him Ken-san." Megumi's tone was just playful enough for half the audience to take her message the wrong way. The trademark laugh and the imaginary fox ears didn't help matters either.

"Ew, not more of that stuff" Yahiko looked disgusted.

"Get your mind out of the gutter Yahiko-chan." The fox ears disappeared like they'd never been there. "When rooster-head's finished eating, that hair of his has a date with my scissors." Megumi turned her attention to Kenshin. "Then you can talk to him Ken-san."

"Hai, Megumi-dono."

~//~

"I trust you fox." Sano sat cross-legged on the floor in one of the rooms of Kenshin and Kaoru's home. His stiff back and tense voice almost negated the words that he muttered. Megumi stood behind him with an old pair of surgical scissors.

"I know you trust me. You've said that five times already."

_If he says it one more time I'm going to start thinking he doesn't_

"I know you know I trust you just" His voice cracked slightly. "Be careful alright?"

"Rooster-head, this is a haircut, not surgery! Nothing's going to go wrong." Frustrated, Megumi grabbed and cut. The sound of scissors shearing through a lock of his hair caused Sanosuke to dive forward out of her range. He searched the top of his head frantically and then turned in horror to see the long clump of hair lying on the floor.

"Damn it Fox! That's a lot of freakin' hair!" He felt his head and finally located the shortened section. "Chikusho you've messed it up haven't you??"

"No I have not Sanosuke! Get over here and let me finish." Megumi took a step toward him and in turn, he scooted farther away.

A loud crash alerted Kenshin to the problem. He slid the rice paper door open and watched in surprise as Megumi chased Sano around the room holding the scissors like the sharpened weapon that they were.

"Oro Is everything alright?"

Megumi paused and tried to compose herself as Sano backed against the wall. His hair was cut in random patches.   
  
"Yes Ken-san. Everything's fine. Rooster-head is just acting like a child."

"Chikusho Kenshin, help me!" Sano was on his knees, begging. "She's trying to ruin my hair!" Megumi turned to Sanosuke threateningly.

"Maa Maa" Ever the calm one in situations like this, Kenshin held up his hands trying to get them to relax. "Megumi-dono, if you want I can have Kaoru come and finish up for you." This comment elicited blank stares and synchronized blinking from both Sano and Megumi.

"Kaoru?" Sano and Megumi both asked as they stared at Kenshin.

"Sure why not?" Kenshin ignored their dumbfounded expressions as he continued with his trademark rurouni smile. "She's really very talented at cutting people's hair, that she is."

"Hell no, I don't want my hair to look like yours!"

Kenshin's head jerked over in Sano's direction and then back toward Megumi as she quickly patted his shoulder, trying to distract him from Sanosuke's rude comment. "I can handle it Ken-san, but thank you for the offer."

"S sure thing Megumi-dono." Megumi turned him around and pushed him towards the sliding door. Before he knew it, Kenshin was out in the hallway with the door closed behind him.

Kenshin reached up and felt the ends of his short red hair absently. As he walked down the hall he quietly muttered to himself. "What's wrong with my hair?"

~//~

"Baka! That was rather rude." Megumi scolded Sanosuke like a child. "Kaoru and Kenshin both like his hair the way it is now."

In response, Sanosuke grinned. "Good for them. I don't like it. Kenshin's always had a pony tail, ya know?"

"Not for the last five years he hasn't! Honestly, you seem to forget that things change over time."

Sanosuke sighed and rested his arms on his knees. "Ok ok I get it. Why don't you just rub it in a little more? Didn't I already tell you I'm sorry for being gone so long?"

"I'm just giving you a hard time for being rude to Ken-san" Megumi approached Sanosuke and collected the next clump of hair to sacrifice to her scissors. "We're all just glad to have you back..." Sano winced as her scissors seared through his hair.

"Of course, now they want me to go away again..." Sano flicked the long strands of hair off his drawstring pants. Megumi continued to cut his unruly brown hair as Sano sat in silence.

"So um" The lack of conversation was starting to bother him. For an entire minute it had been nothing but the soft sound of Megumi's scissors.

_And I have little enough time left to spend with Megumi before they ship me out to Hokkaido I'll be missing the sound of her voice soon enough. Kami-sama, how did I stand five years without her?_

"What were you going to tell me earlier?"

Megumi paused in her rhythmic pattern of hair gathering and cutting. "Earlier?" The hand she had pulled away found his hair again and started tracing through it, gently separating it into manageable portions though she didn't actually cut it. Sano found it quite relaxing. "Hmmm I'm not sure, but when Ken-san came in here I was reminded of something I need to tell you."

"Yeah? What's that?" Sano closed his eyes, enjoying the sensation of her hand running through his hair.

"It's about Ken-san." Megumi resumed her work and Sano watched as more long strands of hair fell to the floor. "Do you remember what I told you about him five years ago? Before you left?"

"You're talking about his health right?"

"Yes. Since you two are being forced to fight each other tonight, I think it's important that you understand something about him." Megumi gently pushed Sanosuke's head forward so she could start cutting the back. "He may look alright on the outside but I'm afraid Ken-san's body has suffered more strain and injury than any person I've ever treated." Sano stared at the floor, listening intently as the lady doctor explained. "His body was never designed to withstand the pressure he's placed on it. By appearance alone, someone could easily mistake him for a woman. His small bone structure and minimal muscle mass they aren't conducive to the resilience and strength his fighting style employs." Sano felt her fingers trace the back of his neck as she untangled the mass of his hair. "His injuries from Shishio and Enishi were serious and using his succession technique repeatedly also took a lot out of him I started noticing right after Shishio that his body was weakening. I made my prediction five years ago that it would be impossible for him to use Hiten Mitsurugi in a few years time"

Sano blinked as he realized he'd been staring at the floor hard enough to bore holes in it. "So does that mean?"

"I'm afraid so" Megumi's voice became even more subdued. "As Kenshin's doctor I know more about his health than anyone except, perhaps, Kenshin himself. I haven't done a formal check up on him since spring, but I'm sure it's still the same. His bones, his tendons, his muscles none of them are strong enough to withstand the superhuman techniques he used to use."

"Kuso" Only Sanosuke could swear and still manage to sound introspective at the same time.

To lighten the slightly dampened mood, Megumi ruffled his hair playfully. "So be nice to him, you hear me?"

~//~

A while later, Sanosuke marched down the hallway, bumping into Kenshin as the shorter man came around a corner.

"Oro?" Kenshin looked up and noticed that Megumi had finished her chore. Sanosuke's old hair was back and standing with just as much gravity defying audacity as ever. It was exactly the same as it was before he ever left Japan and Kenshin wondered briefly if it had been intentional or simply an accident on Megumi's part.

"Oh hey, Kenshin..." Pressed against his unshaven jaw line, Sanosuke held a small piece of medical gauze.

"Are you alright Sano?" Concern lined Kenshin's voice as he noticed the small spot of blood forming on the outside of the gauze.

Sanosuke huffed in frustration and looked back down the hallway as Megumi appeared out of nowhere and starting walking toward them. "I was fine until a certain lady doctor tried to shave my damn beard. Where the hell did you learn how to use a razor Fox?"

Megumi narrowed her eyes. "You try shaving somebody else's face sometime." She pushed right on past the two of them and continued down the hall.

"I'll just stick to my own, thank you very much." Sano turned and started marching off in the other direction to avoid following Megumi. Kenshin glanced at the two retreating backs and then made his decision to follow after Sanosuke.

Sano stopped briefly in the room he and Megumi had been in and grabbed the razor and a towel. Ignoring Kenshin, he walked outside and pulled up a bucket of fresh, cold water from their well and immediately set about shaving his beard.

"Now that we've got a minute or two Sano I need to talk to you."

Sano paused and glanced over at the former rurouni. "What's on your mind Kenshin?"

"Tonight's fight is on my mind" Sano continued shaving while he waited for Kenshin to elaborate. Whether Kenshin was aware of it or not, his hand drifted toward the sword at his belt. A click alerted Sano to the potential danger but he only had time to flinch as Kenshin drew his sword, creating a gust of wind as his blade sliced through the air.

Sano opened his eyes when he realized he'd squeezed them shut. "Geeze Kenshin. You scared me for a second there."

Ignoring the effect his actions had on the former gangster, Kenshin held the sword horizontally in front of his face. Sunlight glinted off the blade and drew Sanosuke's attention, mesmerizing him. Kenshin spoke, voice and eyes both full of confidence. "This sword was created for me by the son of the man who made my first sakabatou. Last summer, his son took lessons here at the dojo and in return he created his first and last sword and gave it to me. More so than any weapon I have ever possessed, this blade is a symbol of the peace of the era." Kenshin rotated the alignment of the sword, holding it perpendicular to the ground. "Look at it Sano, and tell me what you see." Sano stepped toward his old friend and closely inspected the blade.

"Well, it's a sakabatou." After another moment or two Sano pulled back and met the former rurouni's violet gaze. "It looks brand new Kenshin not a scratch on it."

"You're right Sano. Since becoming the owner of this weapon, I have not used it in intense combat. Yahiko possesses my old sakabatou and I've entrusted him to carry out the mission that sword was created to fulfill." Kenshin casually positioned the sword and slid it back into the sheath slowly. "Though this may be hard for you to understand My current skills are as untested as this new blade." Kenshin's voice betrayed no emotion.

Sano paused a long moment, working his jaw in silence as thoughts bubbled around in his mind. "So what do we do tonight Kenshin? You and I have to fight and we have to make it look convincing and truthfully there's a part of me that wants to fight you without holding back." His intense brown gaze burned into the equally intense violet one. "The first time we met, you shattered the illusion I'd built around myself. I thought I was invincible back then." Sanosuke smiled ironically. "You showed me twice how foolish that thought was. But it's been five years Kenshin I've seen things and done things in the course of those five years that have made me stronger. I am not the man you left behind when you went to Kyoto" Sanosuke clenched his fists and his jaw in resolution. "I want to prove to you that I'm not a weakness anymore!"

Kenshin placed a warm hand on the taller man's shoulder. "Sano no baka" His eyes twinkled with amusement and laughter. "You aren't still mad at me for leaving you behind are you? In our battle with Shishio you proved to me how foolish I was to think you couldn't handle yourself in a real fight. And since that time, you've proved again and again how reliable you are." Kenshin's grip tightened on Sano's shoulder. "I've waited five years to tell you this Sano You're the one person I've trusted with all my heart. I would trust the lives of my family and our friends to you. I know you're stronger then ever before, I've felt it since the moment you showed up in our back yard. That's why I'm not afraid to let you go do this mission for Saitoh. There's nothing you can't handle my friend."

"Kenshin" The words were like a ray of light blasting through Sano's consciousness.

_He's never admitted this to me before I've felt it, but to know with a certainty that he trusts me and respects me_

Overcome with emotion, Sano grabbed the shorter man and embraced him in a gigantic bear hug.

After regaining his breath, Kenshin fixed Sano with a look that solidified the truth of the words he'd just spoken. "That's why I'm leaving tonight's battle in your hands. You make the move, and I'll follow. If you want to test both of our abilities, I don't really mind because I trust you Sano."

~//~

"Where do you think you're going rooster-head?" Dressed in his white pants and gi, emblazoned with the character for evil, Sagara Sanosuke stood at the gateway to Kenshin and Kaoru's home and dojo. He paused as Megumi called out to him. "Aren't you supposed to stay put until Tokio-san shows up?"

Sano waved away the concern in Megumi's voice. "Why stick around when we don't even know for sure when they're going to show up? Besides, I've got some other people I need to visit before I hand myself over to them." Megumi walked over to him as he spoke. When he was finished she was standing next to him, inspecting his hair and shaving job with a critical eye. She ran her hand along his smooth chin and Sanosuke smiled as he read the satisfaction on her face. "The Fox is happy I see. It's not an easy chore to please you, you know?"

Megumi beamed up at him. "But that makes it more fun, doesn't it? Aren't you a man who likes a challenge?"

Sometimes, my Megumi can be so playfully irresistible.

"And you were right, you did a much better job of shaving than I would have been able to do." Megumi lured his ear closer to her mouth so she could whisper her next comment. "I wasn't going to say this before, but I was really getting tired of kissing you with that prickly beard. That was like kissing sandpaper, Sagara Sanosuke..."

Sano widened his eyes in mock horror. "That's terrible" Then his voice dropped to a rumbling purr. "Maybe we should go try without the beard for a while?"

Hand in hand, Megumi and Sano headed back to the house. They were halfway there when Sanosuke stopped in his tracks. "Chikusho! Didn't I just tell you I was going out?" He turned to Megumi like it was her fault that he'd forgotten. In a way of course, it was. "Evil, evil vixen" Sano waved his finger in her face and Megumi couldn't help but laugh. "You keep this up I'm gonna have to let you wear around the character for evil."

"Sano" Megumi was about to beg him to stay but he silenced her with his finger on her lips.

"Hold that thought Fox" With a wink, he pulled himself away. "I won't be gone long." And with a hasty wave, Sanosuke disappeared out the front gate.

_Baka rooster-headhow much time does he think he's got left before tonight?_

Megumi didn't realize that she'd been staring at the front gate until it began to open. Immediately thinking that it was Sanosuke returning, she rushed toward the door.

"Tokio-san" Megumi didn't bother hiding her disappointment as Tokio and Chou stepped inside.

Saitoh's wife greeted the lady doctor with an almost imperceptible bow. "Megumi-san. Are the men ready to being their briefings?"

Megumi's eyes widened.

_Uh oh_

"Well" Megumi started to laugh weakly but she quickly cleared her throat when Tokio and Chou both started narrowing their eyes. "Not exactly"

~//~

"Anybody home?" The familiar slums of Tokyo brought back a rush of memories for Sanosuke as he stood pounding on the wooden support beam beside the sliding door. "Damn it Katsu, open up!" A particularly powerful knock from the former gangster shook the entire frame of the longhouse. "It's me!"

The door slid open and Sanosuke couldn't help but grin as he read the surprise on the face of his old friend. "Sano? Is that you?"

Sano happily noted that his friend hadn't changed a bit. Tsukioka Katsuhiro was even wearing a green headband just like the one he'd worn the night the two of them had bombed government buildings. "Hey Katsu, its been a while."

Katsu's surprised look quickly turned into an uncharacteristically excited grin. "Five years, to be precise. Come on in and tell me where you've been, you big idiot." Katsu ushered him inside and offered him some sake.

Sano held up his hand in polite refusal. "No thanks Katsu." Katsu gave him a questioning look. It wasn't like his old friend to refuse a drink of sake. He shrugged and poured himself a cup as the ex-gangster plopped down on the floor. "So you surprised to see me?"

Katsu smiled in amusement. "Not really." He reached behind himself and tossed Sano a newspaper. "Page four, second column." Taking a sip of the sake, Katsu watched Sano intently as he flipped to the fourth page.

"_Mysterious Stowaway Saves Ship and Crew_." Sano read the article title and then gave his friend with an impressed look. "How'd you figure out it was me?"

Katsu shrugged comically. "Try reading the article, idiot."

"Oh." Sano looked back down and scanned the story. "'Character for evil' on his back hey? Yeah, I guess that would make it pretty easy to put two and two together." Sano grinned at his friend slyly. "Even if you are a moron."

"I half expected you to stop by earlier." Katsu sipped from his small glass of sake and fixed his friend with a pointed look.

Sano scratched the back of his neck in guilt, not missing Katsu's tone. "I would have but I've been busy running all over Japan getting my friends together."

"Oh yes. I forget how popular you are."

It was sarcasm, but it was something that Sano was used to from his old friend. Smiling, Sano decided to change the subject. "So how are things going Katsu?"

Katsu set down his sake, ready for conversation. "Well, I've been publishing my newsletter and it has become about as popular as you can expect those things to become. I do a little painting now and then to keep the money coming. It's a life I suppose" Trailing off as he realized how uninteresting the topic of his life was, Katsu decided to switch the tracks of their conversation. "But what about you Sano? How did you enjoy your world travels?" He leaned forward intently.

"The world certainly is a big place Katsu. It's amazing what you can find out there. But to tell you the truth, I'm glad to be back in Japan so things can finally make sense again."

Katsu seemed to consider his comment for a minute. "Interesting choice of words Sanosuke To tell you the truth, I don't think Japan makes much sense at all" Subdued, Katsu glanced into his sake cup as though the clear, swirling liquid held the solutions to the problems that were apparently weighing on his mind.

Not missing the change in their conversation, Sano cleared his throat quietly. "I guess that's not exactly what I meant. I'm not talking about the government or anything like that" It was a stab in the dark, but Sanosuke somehow figured Katsu's problems revolved around the Meiji government. Brightening up, Sanosuke continued. "I'm talking about everyday people and everyday things. I'm talking about taking your shoes off before you walk into a house. I'm talking about rice balls, ohagi, miso soup, and sake. I'm talking about a language that makes sense."

Katsu's smile was back on his face as Sano emphatically listed off a number of other things he liked better about Japan. "Yes, I suppose I take some of those things for granted sometimes. But still..." Katsu got up and walked over to a desk. He pulled out a stack of newspaper clippings and took them back over to Sano. "You can enjoy the simple things Sano, but none of the bigger issues should be ignored." Sano eyed the newspaper clippings questioningly. "You want to know something Sano?" Katsu didn't really need a response Sanosuke's attentive gaze was enough. "I think there is something terrible about to happen in Japan."

Sano narrowed his eyes in thought. "What do you mean?"

"You know that ship you came in on?" Even Sano couldn't forget things that quickly so he nodded, prompting Katsu to continue. "Do you have any idea what the cargo was?"

Sano shrugged. "No clue."

"Weapons. Military grade rifles, explosives, Armstrong cannons, and gatling guns."

"The military is always shipping in weapons. What about it?" Sano didn't see the seriousness of the situation that the tone in Katsu's voice seemed to be betraying.

"At least five similar shipments have been hijacked in the last year alone." Katsu handed Sano some of the newspaper clippings. They were all about ships that had gone missing. "And it gets worse. I've uncovered information that the military has 'lost track' of a few naval vessels."

"Someone has stolen navy battleships?" Sano didn't bother containing his surprise.

"That's not what the Meiji government would have us believe. In fact, they would rather we don't know a thing. I can't even afford to print anything about it in my newsletter or they'd come hunting me down for sure." Katsu's eyes flashed with emotion.

"That can't be good. You have any ideas what's going on?"

Katsu looked at Sano, his eyes dark. "It smells like another revolution to me." The ex-gangster's eyes widened and he sat up in alarm. Katsu let the idea hang in the air for a while before he handed Sano another newspaper article. "Check this out."

The ex-ganster read it over. "The guys that were trying to hijack the ship I saved?" The article listed the names of the group of men Sano had beaten to a pulp. There was very little information given. "What about them?"

"I checked the backgrounds on these guys and they all have one thing in common." Sano sat forward waiting for Katsu to continue. "Each of their last known residences was in Hokkaido." Sano's shock at the mention of the northernmost island of Japan could not be contained. "What is it Sano?" Katsu had noticed his reaction. It would have been difficult not to.

"Hokkaido?" Sano was deep in thought.

"Yes, they're all from Hokkaido. Most of them are former samurai too. Hokkaido's interesting history makes this whole thing very suspicious..."

"That's just too coincidental." Sano muttered to himself, seemingly ignoring Katsu's comments.   
"What is it? Do you know something?"

Sano looked up at his friend and tore himself away from his thoughts. "Can you keep quiet if I tell you?"

Katsu looked amused that Sano would even have to ask the question. "Do you know how much information I know that I can't print? Tell me Sano. You can trust me." For the next hour Sanosuke explained everything he knew about the situation. When he was finished, the two sat in silence.

"I can't help but wonder if a repeat of the aftermath of the Bakumatsu might happen again." Katsu was the one to break their silence. "After the Tokagawa Shogunate was overthrown a group of former samurai fled to Hokkaido and tried to set up their own government. The Ishin Shishi moved in and crushed them. I'd bet there are still those who resent that in Hokkaido." Katsu paused a moment while the both thought things over. He finally looked up at his friend and smiled. "Sano, it's good to know that someone as capable as you is looking into this whole thing. I feel a little better thinking that you'll have a hand in figuring out what's going on and hopefully putting a stop to it. If you need my help for anything, just let me know. I too love Japan, and I would hate to see our country's soil bathed in blood again." Katsu paused dramatically and clenched his fist. "Show them what former members of the Sekihoutai can really do."

The two men grinned at each other and then the ex-gangster rose to his feet. "Thanks Katsu. I'll definitely let you know what we find out when I get back. Well, I better get going." Katsu stood and with a conspiratorial smile he reached into his sleeve pockets and pulled out three small items.

"You might want these tonight when you visit that Meiji pig." Sano reached out his hand and caught a handful of pineapple bombs.

As he looked down at them, he shook his head in wonder. "You're still making these things Katsu?" Sano wasn't being condescending. The look on his face and the gleam in his eye did more than hint at his amusement.

"A guy has to have hobbies, doesn't he?" The former explosives expert of the Sekihoutai smirked and folded his arms inside his sleeves.

The look on the street fighter's face indicated that he agreed wholeheartedly. "Thanks. I'm sure these will come in handy."

_They always do._

Sano paused for a moment more, looking down at the explosives. "One more thing before I go. I'm leaving some very special people here in Tokyo"

"I'll keep an eye on them Sano." Katsu smiled at his old friend.

"Thanks Katsu Alright, I'm outta here. I'll see you when I get back from Hokkaido."

"I'll be waiting. Since I'm not going to be there to keep an eye on you, you'd better take care of yourself, idiot."

Turning as he spoke, Sanosuke offered a casual backward wave in parting. "Sure thing moron."

~//~

"Where have you _been_ Sanosuke?" Megumi grabbed him the minute he walked back in the front gate. It was a little more straightforward than he was used to but Sanosuke always prided himself on being able to take everything in stride. Her slightly flushed face, the fire dancing in her eyes, the curve of her lips when she was angry

_Damn, she's beautiful_

Sano grabbed Megumi tightly and pulled her close. "You're so impatient Fox."

When Megumi pushed him away he was just a little confused. "Rooster-head! Everyone has been looking everywhere for you! You've been gone for hours and Tokio-san and that broom haired psycho cop showed up five minutes after you left! I told you not to go running off. I think you're really in trouble this time."

"Chikusho" Sano darted around Megumi and trotted toward the house.

_I do not want to start this whole mission out by pissing off Saitoh's wife._

The minute he stepped inside the front door something hard poked against the small of his back.

"Stop right there, Zanza."

Sano froze in his tracks. The unfamiliar voice and commanding tone could only belong to a cop. Sano wasn't entirely sure what was pressed against his back but he'd had enough experience in countries where firearms were the weapons of choice to make any stupid moves.

"You're under arrest."

_What the hell??_

Sanosuke's mind was screaming though his body remained calm.

_Did something go terribly wrong?_

Sanosuke slowly turned to catch a glimpse of his captor. "Y Yahiko?" Utter surprise quickly turned to anger. "What the hell are you doing??"

Standing behind him, Yahiko was dressed in the black uniform of the sword police. Pressed against Sanosuke's back was the handle of his sakabatou. The stupidest grin Sano had ever seen was plastered to the young swordsman's face. "Ha ha, fooled ya!"

"You scared the shit out of me you little punk!" Sanosuke grabbed Yahiko by the collar of his uniform. It was easy enough to be angry now that he realized everything was all right. "What the hell are you doing wandering around dressed up like a damn cop?"

"Practicing of course! You should have seen the look on your face rooster-head!" After spending a few moments suspended in the air Yahiko plucked Sano's hands from his collar and dropped back to the ground. He laughed, straightened up his collar, and then busied himself dusting off his shoulders and sleeves with pride. Sano watched the display with one raised eyebrow but couldn't keep himself from reacting when Yahiko cleared his throat and used his best cop imitation voice. "Nice to meet you, my name is Mounai Yuunosuke. I'm one of the elite sword police."

Sano pushed him roughly and Yahiko barely kept himself from falling off the edge of the raised porch. "Cut it out Yahiko, you're starting to scare me."

"And you were starting to scare us Sagara-san." The female voice came from behind and Sanosuke did a quick 180 to face Saitoh's wife. There was no warmth in her voice, and as a man who didn't particularly care for authority Sanosuke didn't have any trouble spotting someone who expected to being obeyed. "Leaving the dojo was not part of the deal. You were allowed to go out last night, but only in the guise of a foreign businessman." Behind Tokio stood Chou and Aoshi, who both shot him equally cold looks. The former okashira of the Oniwabanshu was dressed in the same uniform Yahiko was wearing and Sanosuke thought he looked strangely comfortable dressed as a cop. "What if someone spotted you?" Tokio continued. "You would have been arrested if the police had found you and then our mission would have been jeopardized." Sanosuke felt himself shrinking as she continued her onslaught. He wasn't sure if it was his actual physical body or simply his ego that was deflating.

_She has definitely been living with Saitoh for too many years_

"What could have possibly been so important that you'd risk the fate of Japan?" Tokio's eyes were full of cold fury as she finished.

Sano gulped and then gathered his courage about him. "It it was nothing Tokio-san. I just had to visit an old friend."

Tokio held her hands up to her forehead and massaged her temples as she muttered quietly. "Hajime What did I do to deserve this?"

Sensing that his competency was in question, Sanosuke spoke up to try and assuage her fears. "Hey Tokio-san, it's not a big deal really. I wasn't visiting anyone who's going to give anything away or make my story less credible. It was just my old friend Katsu."

Tokio stopped massaging her head and met Sanosuke's hopeful look. "Tsukioka Katsuhiro? Former member of the Sekihoutai?" Sano nodded and noted with some relief that a small smile was turning the corners of her mouth. "You're right. That shouldn't be a problem." Sano felt the tightened muscles in his shoulders and neck relax. "You were lucky this time Sagara please don't do anything else without our express permission."

"No problem." Sano assured her with his best confident smile. Apparently, someone in the near vicinity didn't think Sano was capable of following Tokio's order. Quiet snickering alerted Sano to Yahiko's opinion on the matter. Turning to shoot the spiky haired young man a dirty look, Sano missed Aoshi's imperceptible nod of disapproval.

"Now, it's time for your briefing Kenkaya Zanza."

~//~

The plans were simple enough that even Sanosuke understood them completely. Yahiko and Aoshi had both been given false identities as former gangsters who were forced to become cops after a failed attempt on the government. It wasn't unheard of and Chou was living proof that it happened. The former member of the Juppon Gatana had actually been the one to suggest the idea for their identities, or at least that's what he'd told them.

The two would be his special escorts all the way to Hokkaido along with Tokio and Chou. Once they reached the Hokkaido Provincial Prison, Yahiko and Aoshi would both stay there and work as prison guards. After briefly explaining Yahiko and Aoshi's situation to Sano, Tokio jumped right into his mission for the night. A basic layout of Mr. Tani's mansion was provided for him to study and Tokio offered him useful advice on how to best carry out his objectives. Sano listened, but only halfheartedly. Breaking into a house and beating down yakuza was kind of his specialty.

"After you've defeated some of the police, Kenshin will arrive and you two will put on your show. Kenshin will defeat you and then you'll be arrested. Tomorrow morning we will come and transfer you out of your temporary cell. Then it's off to the prison in Hokkaido."

"What about Tani?" Sanosuke folded his arms as he questioned the beautiful woman.

"Chou will take care of arresting him after you beat him. There will be enough incriminating evidence in his mansion to lock him away for the rest of his existence."

When the briefing had been concluded, Kaoru, Misao, Megumi and Tsubame served them all dinner. It had been pleasant, but Sanosuke found his thoughts drifting the entire time. When dinner was finished, he wandered off by himself to one of Kenshin and Kaoru's guestrooms and crashed into the futon to spend some quality time figuring out exactly what kind of a mess he'd gotten himself into.

Thoughts swarmed through Sagara Sanosuke's head as he stared up at the ceiling. Parts of the briefing had been painful as both Chou and Tokio made sure to drill into his head that he couldn't screw things up.

_"Failure is not an option, Sagara-san."_

Sano huffed in frustration and covered his face with his hand.

_Funny how they tell me not to fail while telling me I have to lose my fight with Kenshin._

Sano felt the muscles in his face tightening into a smile. The irony of the situation was overpowering.

_I never thought I'd fight Kenshin again and here I am being forced to fight him but if I fight for real I might mess up the mission and if I don't try my hardest, I'm never gonna to be able to forgive myself._

"Nobody has ever asked me to lose a fight before" Sano sighed and dropped his hand away from his face.

_Kenshin said he trusted me I won't betray his trustbut then do I just let him win without any sort of fight?_

Sighing forlornly, Sano barely heard the sound of the rice paper door sliding open.

"Um" A small voice practically whispered. Glancing toward the door, Sano caught sight of a young boy wearing a white gi and a red headband.

Chuckling to himself, he sat up on the futon. "What's up kid?" The look on Outa's face seemed to indicate that the young boy was having an internal struggle of his own.

"Uh SSanosuke." Outa approached him tentatively. "Are you going away somewhere?"

Sano waved him closer casually. "Yup kid. Only for a little while though."

"You're gonna go help people right?" Outa slowly sat down on the floor in front of his older brother. Sano couldn't help but smile as he looked at the mirror image of his younger self. "Tsuyoshi said that his mother and father are trying to protect Japan and he told me that you're going to be helping them."

"Yeah"

"I think I think Dad would be really proud of you. I wrote him a letter and told him you were back."

Sano raised an eyebrow. "Oh really?"

"Yes. I haven't heard back from him and you'll be gone by the time I do, but I'm sure he'd wish you luck." Outa paused a minute and then smiled up at Sanosuke timidly. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Why did you run away from home and join the Sekihoutai?"

Sanosuke blinked, the question had caught him off guard. "Well Outa When I was about your age, I guess I got sick of farming." He grinned, hoping that the answer would suffice. While Outa did returned the smile, Sano could tell he needed to expound on his answer to truly satisfy the young boy's curiosity.

_I suppose I owe him at least this much since I haven't been much of a big brother to him._

"But that wasn't all there was too it It's true I didn't want to spend my life as a farmer But when the Sekihoutai came through town I felt something I'd never felt before. They wanted to help make a better life for the common folk. They were fighting for something bigger than all of us." Sano smiled wistfully. "I saw hunger and oppression everywhere I looked in our small farming village, but Captain Sagara told me that they were fighting to rid the world of suffering and inequality. He needed men to help build the new golden age and even though I was just a boy, I felt it was my duty."

"I wish I'd been alive." Outa's voice teemed with emotion. "If I'd been around and old enough to go, I would have come with you to join the Sekihoutai." Sano felt pride welling up inside, as though the young man in front of him was his own son and not just his little brother. "My whole life I'd been afraid of everything until I met you. If you'd have been around when I was born, I know I'd have been strong like you. I bet Captain Sagara would be proud to see that you're still fighting to help people."

Sanosuke reached out and ruffled Outa's spiky hair. "You think so?"

Outa nodded assertively. "Someday I'm going to be stronger, and then I'm going to help protect people just like you and Kenshin and Yahiko and Kaoru."

"You'll be there some day Outa. The more I get to know you the more you remind me of myself when I was about your age."

Outa's face brightened. "Really? Do you mean that?"

"Yup. Except you might just be a little smarter than I was." Sanosuke winked at his little brother and in response Outa grinned. "In fact, maybe you can help me out with something."

"What's that?"

"Well, pretend for a moment that you and your best friend were" Sano paused a moment searching for the words to make Outa understand. "Practicing together but then you got into a real fight. Do you think your friend would be angry with you and not want to be your friend anymore?"

Outa shook his head emphatically, thinking back to all the times he and Tsuyoshi had gotten into arguments. "Friends like each other and understand each other completely that's what makes somebody your friend in the first place."

~//~

At Outa's urging, Sanosuke dragged himself off the futon and spent the next few hours with his friends. Even though the mood was dampened because of Sanosuke, Aoshi, and Yahiko's imminent departure, everyone managed to enjoy themselves. The girls all put on happy faces for their respective men, not wanting to get in the way of the job they were being called to perform for the sake of Japan most of the girls, anyway.

"Aoshi-sama, are you suuuuure you want to do this?"

Half the group laughed as Misao posed the question to Aoshi for about the tenth time that night. The former okashira of the Oniwabanshu nodded his head in the affirmative and took a sip from his green tea.

"Are you suuuure I can't come with you?"

"Misao" Aoshi set down his cup. "I am very serious when I say that you cannot come with us." A small smile graced his lips and his next words carried an uncharacteristic hint of teasing. "You would only serve to distract me from the mission."

More carefree hours passed away until the appointed time for Tokio and Chou's return arrived. They showed up at the dojo and quietly entered the room. "There are two last orders of business before we begin." Tokio informed everyone once she had their undivided attention. "First off" Tokio turned to Kaoru and Kenshin. "I have a favor to ask you two."

"We'll do whatever we can to help." Kaoru offered when Tokio seemed to wait for their response.

"My son and foster son are going to be left alone while I head north Is there any way?"

Kaoru cut her off before she could finish the question. "We'd be glad to have them stay here while you're gone, Tokio-san."

Tokio bowed her head respectfully. "Thank you so much, Kaoru-san." Tokio passed her gaze over the rest of the people in the room. "The last order of business is for each of you to make your farewells. We don't know how long this mission is going to take"

Kenshin cleared his throat. "Yahiko, Aoshi" Kenshin turned his violet gaze to the former gangster. "Sano I just want to wish you all luck with the mission. I wish I could be there to help you but I know that with your combined skills, everything will work out."

"We're going to miss you guys." Kaoru sat at her husband's side, holding his hand tightly. "Aoshi, I wish we'd have gotten to spend more time with you before you have to go Yahiko, I know you'll be able to handle everything because I know how hard you've been training for the day that you'd be able to really protect people. Sanosuke, life hasn't been the same here in Tokyo without you" Kaoru smiled wistfully. "So get everything taken care of and come back to us."

The others began their farewells but the tension was palpable. Tsubame, Misao, and Megumi weren't ready to say goodbye to their men. Tokio sensed the apprehension and knew that a large group farewell wouldn't satisfy the three women. "I'm going to arrange some time for the three of you to say goodbye to Aoshi-san, Yahiko-kun, and Sanosuke-san tomorrow right before they leave for Hokkaido." The three women were happy but more importantly, Yahiko, Aoshi, and Sanosuke seemed relieved.

There were some forceful hugs and a few patted heads and then the children were tucked in bed. The last order of business was complete. "Well now everything seems to be in order." Tokio smiled at the people left in the room. Yahiko, Tsubame, Kenshin, Kaoru, Aoshi, Misao, Megumi, Sanosuke and Chou all waited for her next comment. "Is it time?"

Chou pulled out a pocket watch and glanced at it. "Yup. It's time." The blonde agent turned his one eyed gaze to Sano. "Get going rooster-head or should I say Zanza?"

Sano got to his feet and looked his friends over. Smiling like an idiot he gave everyone a thumbs up. "Well I'm outta here. I've got places to go and bad guys to beat on." His false bravado seemed to fool his friends.

"Just be careful, rooster-head." Megumi's eyes held unmasked concern and Sano knew that at least she had seen through his casual behavior.

"Don't worry Fox." Sano winked at her and then turned toward Kenshin. "Try not to be late Kenshin. I'll be waiting for ya." Sano's grin faded a moment as he stood looking his friends over. Everyone could tell that there was more he wanted to say to them before he left. Not being a sentimental person, Sano settled for a roguish grin and his patented casual wave. "See ya."

A chorus of farewells and encouragements followed the ex-gangster as he exited the house. Stepping out into the night air, Sano stood and let his eyes adjust to the relative darkness. At least, that's what he told himself he was doing. A part of Sano didn't have the desire to set out on his mission and leave his friends behind.

"Sanosuke" Whirling at the sound of his name, Sano found Megumi standing in the doorway. The light from inside the house framed her body, giving her an otherworldly glow.

"Megumi" In an instant, she was in his arms.

"Sano, I know we'll get to see each other tomorrow but so many things could happen between now and then" Sanosuke silenced the train of her thought with a passionate kiss and time chose that moment to stand still.

After finally pulling apart, Sanosuke cupped his hand against her cheek. "Don't worry Megumi, I'll see you tomorrow."

Entranced by the fire dancing in his eyes, Megumi nodded meekly. "Good luck tonight Sagara Sanosuke Tomorrow can't come soon enough"

-----------------------

Okay... part one has set the stage for this Kenshin/Sano rematch. Part two is up next so keep reading! You know you want to find out what's going to happen. 


	17. Chapter 16: Rematch in the Moonlight

Author: Arashi (Arashi@kenkaya.com)

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Beta Reader: Karina Kineshi (thank you so much for your time and super helpful suggestions!!)

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

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**Chapter 16: Rematch in the Moonlight**

"That's probably the hardest thing I've ever done in my life" Sano muttered to himself as he kicked a stray rock down a dusty street. Pulling himself away from Megumi and the rest of his friends was more painful than any farewell he'd ever been a part of.

_Even though I'm only going to be gone for a little while I don't think it's ever been that hard to say goodbye to anyone It wasn't like that when I ran away from home or when I left for Kyoto to track down Kenshin Hell, even when I left Japan I didn't feel like this. For the first time in my life, I really feel like I belong somewhere and there's people who really care about me_

Remembering that it was foolish to get sentimental before a fight, Sano slapped both his hands against his face.

_Snap out of it Sagara Sanosuke, you're getting soft._

~//~

Sanosuke did not get lost on his way to Mr. Tani's mansion. Tokio had given him very detailed directions and descriptions of the man's manor. A stonewall surrounded the perimeter of the vast plot of land the building was located on. The entrance was a large iron barred gate and through the spaces between the bars, Sanosuke could see the long stone path leading to the main house. Marble statues lines the path and halfway to the house a large fountain shot a spray of water a good ten feet up into the air. Casually leaning against the iron gate, Sanosuke admired the scene before him. The building was a new Tudor style mansion that the Japanese had become fond of recently. It reminded Sano of many such buildings he'd seen in his travels through Europe and America. Whistling quietly to himself, Sano realized that he'd never even be able to afford the intricate gate he was leaning against.

As if that realization made up his mind, Sano pulled back his fist to destroy the obstacle. He stopped before swinging, remembering certain items in his pocket that would provide for an even flashier entrance. Grinning his patented Zanza smile, Sano pulled out the three pineapple bombs and walked away from the gate.

An explosion ripped through the peaceful night air, causing men inside the building to scramble. Sano stepped through the smoke and rubble to see twenty men charging down the stone pathway. Some carried clubs and the others had katanas but Sano didn't care either way. Tucking the two remaining explosives back into his pocket, Sano stabbed his left hand into the ground and sent a controlled blast of Futae no Kiwami racing towards the men. He watched in satisfaction as about half of them were unable to avoid the blast. Those unlucky men were knocked off their feet and into the air. The others stopped dead in their tracks, confused by the fate that had befallen their companions. Some of the men on their feet were clueless, but a few of them realized that the blast had been Sano's doing. As Sano casually approached them, three of the men broke from the group and started running back toward the mansion calling for backup.

Sano switched from a menacing walk to a dead run so quickly that his remaining opponents didn't have time to react. He was on them instantly and with one well-placed kick or punch, each of the men collapsed to the ground. Not even waiting for his last opponent to drop, Sano raced toward the three cowards. He was moving too fast for them to avoid and soon all three of them were sprawled out along the pathway, unconscious.

Pausing as he reached the huge front doors, Sano reached inside his pocket.

_Don't want to carry these things longer than necessary._

A brief mental image of what would happen to him if the pineapple bombs exploded in his pockets popped into his mind. Cringing, he chucked one to his right and one to his left. He made sure that none of the men would be injured, but two particularly nice statues set away from the pathway exploded into tiny bits.

_Lackeys defeated, property damaged, flashy entrance completed_

Sano mentally checked off his progress.

_Now it's time to pay my old buddy Mr. Tani a visit!_

Not bothering to consider the beauty of the intricate, imported, and expensive doors, Sano pulled back his left fist. The force of his Futae no Kiwami sent little wood splinters spraying into the main entryway of Mr. Tani's mansion. Four men standing on either side of the door cried out in surprise as pieces of shrapnel got into their eyes.

"It's not nice to try and ambush people." Hands in his pockets, Sano regarded the four men casually.

"You crazy bastard!" The first man to clear his sight drew his katana and rushed at Sano with a ferocious battle cry. Sidestepping easily, Sano used the force of the man's charge and his elbow to send the man flying out of the mansion.

Casually placing his hand back in his pocket, Sano gave the remaining three men a malicious grin. "Who's next?"

"I don't know who you are or what you want, but we're stopping you here!" As one, the three men drew their katanas and held them threateningly.

Sano stifled a yawn with the back of his hand. "Yes yes just attack me already, this is getting boring."

Incensed by Sano's flippant attitude, the three men charged him at the same time. One particularly impressive roundhouse kick finished the three ignorant swordsmen who were grouped too tightly together. A slight cut in the fabric of Sano's pants was all the reward their efforts produced.

"Chikusho, my pants" Inspecting the hole, Sano felt his jaw tighten in anger.

_Megumi made me these pants, dammit! All these little yakuza bastards are going to pay!_

Hearing the sound of panicked voices, Sano glanced up to a balcony overlooking the entryway. A large double staircase led to the overhanging balcony and the second floor. Quickly decided his remaining opponents were on the second floor, Sano charged up the stairs in three giant leaps roaring like a crazed animal.

When he reached the top, he found another four men huddling in front of a set of double doors at the end of one long hallway. It was obvious the men were supposed to keep him out of that particular room, but even more apparent were the looks of absolute fear on their faces.

Eyes flashing savagely, Sanosuke held up his left hand with his fingers spread. One at a time, he brought his fingers down to form a fist, cracking each of his knuckles loudly in the process. A few shocked intakes of breath indicated to Sano that the men appreciated his little talent.

_Only the knuckles of a hardened street fighter crack like this_

With his cold Zanza smile, Sano walked slowing down the hallway. The men inched further and further back until they were each pressed against the door. There was nowhere for them to run.

"How did he get all the way up here?" One of the frantic men turned to his companions.

"Who is this freak?"

"Red headband, white gi, scary as hell"

"Holy shit! It's Zanza!" As one of the men made the exclamation, the other three jumped in surprise.

"No freakin' way! Zanza fled Japan five years ago! It can't be him!" Lost in conversation, the cornered men didn't notice that Sano was standing right next to them.

"Hi guys." Sano waved his hand in front of the nearest bodyguard's face. The four men yelled when he startled them and then they fought amongst themselves to be the farthest away from Sano. Offered like a sacrifice, one unlucky man found himself in front of his 'friends'.

"Zanza, please don't hurt me!" He dropped his sword and pressed his hands together in front of his face. "I'm your biggest fan!"

"That's nice." As Sano held up his left hand, all four of the men winced in anticipation. "You guys are really pathetic." Instead of gracing them with one of his tree shattering punches, Sano curled his middle finger down against his thumb and extended his other fingers. The men blinked in astonishment as they tried to figure out what Sano doing. Holding his hand a mere centimeter in front of the first man's forehead, Sano used his patented "finger flick of doom". The force of his 'blow' caused the men to slam into each other like dominoes. Their bodies cracked against the wall causing a body-sized dent to appear. As they slumped to the ground unconscious, Sano turned his attention to the double doors.

Without fanfare, Sano kicked open the doors, cracking the hinges in the process. The relative darkness of the room gave Sano a disadvantage but he walked straight into the room anyway. Sensing the movement without actually seeing it, Sano stepped back as two men standing on either side of the door lashed out with daggers. Their blows passed right where his neck was half a second earlier. When their swings were complete, Sano reached out into the darkness and found the back of both their heads. Catching hold of their hair, Sano rammed their faces together with a sickening crack. Forced brutally into unconsciousness, Sano felt the two bodies go limp. Instead of dropping them to the ground, Sano steadied his grip on their heads and tossed them into opposite walls as if they weighed no more than a child's doll.

Eyes still not fully unadjusted to the dark, Sano had to rely on his hearing as he peered deeper into the room waiting for his next attacker. The sound of a revolver being cocked hit his ears and caused an instantaneous reaction. Sano only had one method to deflect bullets.

Roaring as he slammed his left fist into the ground, Sanosuke didn't bother to consider the implications of using the Futae no Kiwami on the second floor of a building. Someone fired the gun at the same moment, and the bullet whizzed above his head, deflected by the debris or simply off target since Sano had dropped to his knee. Getting to his feet, Sano felt the floor giving way. He didn't even have time to form a complete thought before the floor gave a horrendous crack and sent him and everyone else in the room crashing down into the unknown.

~//~

_That was rather stupid of me._

With a wry grin, Sano attempted to push himself to his feet. His right hand wouldn't hold the weight he placed on it, and using the soft illumination of the room, he could see a light red stain seeping through the bandages on the back of his hand.

_Chikusho, I must have landed on my hand. Megumi's gonna be mad at me for messing up her fine work again._

A slow smile spread across his face.

_Yes, I can see it now she'll scold me for being an idiot, grab my hand and complain the entire time she's fixing it up how many times have I busted up my hand just to have an excuse to be with her? Except now I can do something beside sit there like an idiot_

With a contented sigh, Sanosuke brought his focus back to the task at hand. Using his other hand for support, he pushed a few broken floorboards off his back and got to his feet. Glancing quickly around the room, he made out the shapes of five other people who were all partially covered by debris. Mr. Tani didn't seem to be one of them.

Approaching the nearest figure, Sano picked up a broken couch to inspect the fallen man.

_This isn't Mr. Tani_

Sighing, Sano dropped the couch back on the man who grunted in pain. Walking to a pair of legs sticking out from under a piece of the broken floor, Sano lifted the debris and found himself staring down the barrel of a gun.

A lightning fast kick sent the handgun spinning out of the bodyguard's grasp and before the man could get to his feet, Sano slammed the debris back down.

_That's not Mr. Tani either damn, where is that fat pig?_

A familiar moan of pain jerked Sano's head around like a bloodhound that had just caught a scent. Stalking toward a toppled desk, he noticed a pair of fat legs sticking out from underneath it.

_There he is!_

With a mighty heave, Sanosuke tossed the desk off the fallen Meiji politician. Tani's face was contorted in pain and for a moment Sanosuke thought the man was going to thank him for removing the heavy object. Instead, he started squealing like the pig he appeared to be.

Placing a foot on the man's ample stomach, Sano grinned evilly. "Remember me?" The incoherent squealing was answer enough.

"Somebody help me!" After a few moments of uncontrolled animalistic terror, the Meiji politician remembered how to speak. In response, Sanosuke applied more pressure with his foot and watched in satisfaction, as the man's eyes seemed to bulge out of their sockets. Nobody made any move to help. "Someone get up and save me! I'll give you twice your wages!"

_Still trying to bribe people to their deaths with money this man will never change. It's just like the time when Kenshin and I were protecting him from that psycho killer Jin'e And then back in my hometown this bastard hired out all sorts of scumbags to take control of the people Damn, I almost forgot how much I hate men like himMen who use their power for corrupt purposes like the whole damn Meiji government_

Sano watched in disgust as a large trickle of sweat traced down Mr. Tani's round cheeks. The top of his balding head glistened in the soft illumination and Sano could faintly make out the smell of perspiration. Everything about the man screamed of his fear and for a moment, the ex-gangster thought back to the first time he'd beaten Tani to a pulp. A feral grin spread itself across his features and the gleam in his eye did not go unnoticed by the politician.

Sharing the same flashback, Tani started blubbering. "What do you want Zanza? Is it money?? I'll pay you whatever you want, just please spare me!"

His comment pushed Sano over the edge. "I don't want your money fat man! You and all the other fat Meiji politicians can rot in hell with your damn _money_!"

"Then what do you want?? I can get you anything, just please leave me alone!"

"I don't want anything from you!" Sano howled. "You're the one who forced me to leave Japan, but now I'm back. I just thought I would stop in and say 'hi'." Tears started coursing down the politician's face and Sano decided he'd tormented the man enough.

_Last thing I wanna do is watch some grown man cry and piss his pants_

Reaching down, he pulled the man's upper body partially off the ground with his left hand. With his right, he landed a vicious punch across the fat man's face. Blood erupted from Mr. Tani's nose and his eyes rolled back in their sockets. As he dropped the unconscious politician back to the ground, the ex-gangster rubbed his aching right hand.

_Somehow I always forget not to use my hand when it's injured._

Smiling as he stared down at the unconscious man, Sanosuke decided the punch was worth every twinge of pain.

_G'night Mr. Tani Your days as a Meiji Politician are over Hope Chou and Tokio have a nice comfy prison cell picked out for ya_

~//~

The cops were right on time. The minute Sanosuke stepped out of the mansion he heard their whistles and yelled orders.

_I'll have to thank Tokio and Chou for working out the details so nicely. I don't even have to be bored between my fights._

"Don't move!" One of the officers yelled as he spotted Sano standing casually in the entryway. In an instant Sano's casual look turned ferocious.

"If you boot lickers are going to protect crooked Meiji politicians, I'm afraid you'll have to answer to me! Kenkaya Zanza!"

~//~

Kenshin winced as Sano drove his fist into one of the police officer's faces. "Should I go now?"

Chou shook his head and Kenshin noted with dismay, the grin of enjoyment on the blonde agent's face. "No give him another minute or two."

Sighing, Kenshin turned his attention back to the ex-gangster as Sano dropped opponent after opponent. The police were in a frenzy and orders were shouted back and forth as a few men broke off to get backup. From their hiding place on top of the wall, Kenshin could see that some part of Sano was enjoying demolishing the cops.

"I'm going." The former rurouni jumped off the wall and soared off into the courtyard before Chou could protest. Turning back toward the street, Chou gave a signal and the other 'players' in the game starting moving into their positions.

Kenshin walked through a row of six policemen who were preparing to attack Sano with a combined front. A total of twenty police had been dispatched to check on the disturbance and all but those six had either fled or fallen.

"Wait! What do you think you're doing!?" One of the officers hollered at him as he approached Sanosuke.

"That man is dangerous!"

"Who do you think you are boy?" Stopping in his tracks, the former Hitokiri turned slowly and regarded the officers with his unassuming rurouni smile.

_Imagine, being mistaken for a boy at MY age._

Kenshin would have laughed, but the situation wouldn't allow it.

"I'll take care of him, that I will." The men seemed taken aback by his appearance and Kenshin figured it was his cross-shaped scar they were noticing. Though the years had faded the mark, a small cross was still visible on his left cheek.

A clear commanding voice rang out in the night air. "Leave him alone men! That's Himura the Battousai you're dealing with!" Chief Uramura stepped through the rubble of the main gate with Aoshi and Yahiko flanking him on both sides. The two were almost unrecognizable in their police officer uniforms and hats.

"This man is the Battousai!?"

Kenshin watched impassively as the six officers reacted to news of his identity. It was something he'd gotten used to after a few years the wide eyes, the slack jaws, the dumbfounded expressions

_The Chief drops my old name every chance he getsHe must enjoy watching his men react._

"I I thought the Battousai was dead!" One of the officers stammered.

"Yeah, he died five years ago! I heard that from my cousin!"

Kenshin shook his head and sighed. "No I'm not dead."

"Yet."

Sanosuke's cold comment elicited the reaction he'd hoped to get. Everyone turned their attention back to him. "What do you think you're doing here Kenshin?" Sano narrowed his eyes.

Taking a deep breath, the former rurouni prepared himself for the battle to come. "I'm here to stop you Sanosuke. I cannot allow you to continue your senseless rampage."

"Senseless rampage?" The ex-gangster growled. "You're just as ignorant as ever. How can you believe the lies the Meiji government feeds you?"

"I just want peace Sanosuke. We all do"

"But at what cost? You more than anyone should know how crooked the government is! I'm going to make them pay for their crimes, so why are you trying to stop me?" Sanosuke clenched his fists in frustration.

_He's really getting into this_

Glancing back at the police officers, Kenshin noted that the men seemed to be soaking up their conversation.

_Well-done Sano. News of this conversation will spread and reinforce your story._

"You're hurting innocent people I won't stand for your tactics. There are other ways to deal with the problem. Let's just be reasonable and talk things over."

"NO TALKING!" Sano fueled his fury with buried emotions, pulling on tragedies from his past to make his words believable for their audience. "It's time for action! If you're going to stand up for the Meiji bastards than there's only one thing left for the two of us to do!" He raised one of his clenched fists, hinting at their only remaining course of action.

Kenshin motioned the police to step back and then he placed his right hand on the handle of his sakabatou. "If this is how it must end, then so be it. I will not allow you to hurt anyone else."

~//~

Yahiko felt his jaw drop as Sanosuke charged Kenshin with a spine-chilling roar. If the young swordsman didn't know any better, he would have honestly thought that Sanosuke was angry with Kenshin. Kenshin dodged Sano's first pass but he kept his hand on the handle of his sakabatou without drawing. Each time the ex-gangster advanced, attempting to kick or punch the former rurouni, Kenshin jumped back out of his range.

"What's wrong Kenshin? Are you afraid?" Sanosuke sneered as he finally noticed the red-haired man's hesitancy.

Smiling to himself, Kenshin recalled their second battle five years earlier. "No Sanosuke I'm just gauging my opponent." The irony of the situation did not detract from the truth of the statement. Kenshin watched intently as Sano attempted to hit him with a variety of street fighter style punches and kicks.

_His speed has increased, but these tactics will never work against me. It doesn't seem like he's trying to use the Futae no Kiwami so maybe this is just a show after all?_

Kenshin breathed a mental sigh of relief. Not that it would have mattered even if Sano were trying to hit him with the devastating double punch. Though the ex-gangster was faster, he still wasn't fast enough to land a blow on the man formerly known as the Hitokiri Battousai.

"Draw your sword Kenshin!" The ex-gangster's rage and the former rurouni's calm contrasted each other like day and night.

_I'll give him what he wants_

Again, Sano punched, attempting to land a blow to Kenshin's face. Instead of jumping back out of Sano's range, Kenshin slid a few inches to one side in a fraction of a heartbeat. The move was fast, possibly the fastest move Sano had ever witnessed firsthand from the former rurouni. It seemed as though an afterimage of Kenshin was still standing in his former position, regarding him with the same calculating gaze. Meanwhile, the real Kenshin stood only a few inches out of the path of Sano's fist, red hair dancing in the wake of his movement.

Excited by the speed, Sano decided to try and match Kenshin's move.

_Kenshin thinks he's read me perfectly It's time to show him how wrong he is!_

Kenshin's sakabatou was freed from its sheath with a click and the former rurouni prepared to attack the ex-gangster.

_The momentum from that last punch has him off balanced. I'll wait until he's followed through completely and then hit him, adding his force to mine for a greater effect._

His sword never got the chance to connect. Pulling against the natural laws of inertia and momentum, Sanosuke stopped his punch in mid swing and reversed its direction. Tightening his arm, the ex-gangster pulled his elbow back and landed a powerful blow to the rurouni's face.

Blood splattered from his mouth as Kenshin felt the inside of his cheek smash against his teeth. He spun once with the momentum and then staggered back a few steps, somehow managing to stay on his feet.

_Holy shit! I hit him! That's the first time I've actually connected with him in a real fight!_

It took Sano every ounce of restraint in his body to keep himself from shouting out his excitement. Kenshin was stunned, but the strength of his ken ki told Sano he was not defeated.

_Not that my elbow wouldn't have destroyed a NORMAL man! Kenshin took it and managed to stay on his feet!_

Sano felt himself grinning, and didn't bother to hide it since it fit perfectly with his Zanza identity. Of course, Sano and Zanza were smiling for two separate reasons.

_I don't care what the Fox said about him, Kenshin's still got his inhuman strength and stamina!_

The red-haired man absently raised his hand to his bruised cheek and then turned his violet gaze to meet the smiling ex-gangster.

"Sanosuke"

And then a strange thing happened. Kenshin's powerful ken ki vanished and the former rurouni's knees buckled. Part of Sano wanted to stop him from falling, the rest of Sano was too stunned to move.

_ What happened?_

The tip of the sakabatou sunk into the earth as Kenshin collapsed to one knee, breathing heavily.

_What have I done??_

Drops of blood from Kenshin's mouth splattered against his white hakama.

_This isn't supposed to be happening_

Sanosuke's mind whirled.

_My blow didn't hurt him! He was fine a second ago!! Kenshin's invincible!_

_"Idiot! He most certainly is not!" _Megumi's condescending comment from five years earlier floated into the ex-gangster's mind. Sanosuke felt terror rising up the back of his throat like bile. He took a step backwards and turned, facing the row of police, Chief Uramura, Yahiko, and Aoshi.

A string of harsh curses ran through Sanosuke's mind as he realized that he'd screwed everything up. Every gaze he met held a look of shockespecially the expression on Yahiko's face.

_Kenshin's supposed to beat me! How many times did they tell me that? How was I supposed to know that he'd drop after one hit?? And now what the hell am I supposed to do??_

The answer was obvious. For the sake of the mission, he needed to finish his opponent. Sano's mouth had gone dry and he felt his tongue slowly adding moisture to his lips. Curling his lower lip under, Sanosuke bit down on its edge feeling a twinge of pain as a warm metallic liquid trickled into his mouth.

_Chikusho get up Kenshin_

Sanosuke could tell that Kenshin wouldn't be getting up any time soon. The former Hitokiri Battousai was using all his strength to keep himself from collapsing to the ground. Both hands clutched the handle of the sakabatou and the sword shook in his unsteady grasp.

_Dammit Kenshin Get up_

Glancing down in surprise, Sanosuke found that one of his feet had placed itself in front of the other. His body seemed to be moving under it's own accord toward the fallen man.

~//~

_Kenshin No_

Shock mixed with denial and Yahiko wanted to reject the scene in front of his face. Sanosuke marched slowly toward the fallen man as Kenshin tried then failed to regain his footing. Red hair tossed gently from side to side as the former rurouni attempted to clear his mind by shaking his head. The motion caused droplets of blood to scatter and Yahiko watched each one collide against his white pants.

_One hit He was defeated in one hit_

The young swordsman wanted to run to his side, ask him if he was all right, and help him to his feet. Another part of Yahiko wanted to rush in, draw his sakabatou, and protect Kenshin from his opponent.

_But his opponent is Sanosuke_

Pulling his gaze from Kenshin, Yahiko focused on the ex-gangster. Shadows hid Sanosuke's eyes from sight, but the firm set to his lips and his tense body language did not bode well for the red-haired man. His clenched fists said the rest.

_Chikusho Sanosuke is going to keep fighting_

Yahiko didn't know what to think, but his body screamed at him to act. The sheath of Kenshin's old sakabatou was reassuring in his grip as he clicked the weapon free. Before he could draw, Yahiko felt a strong hand on his shoulder. The young swordsman turned and found the former okashira of the Oniwabanshu.

Aoshi's quiet strength and calm were the only things that kept Yahiko from charging into the fray. "This isn't your fight" Yahiko heard Aoshi's words and knew they were true.

_Damn it all! For the sake of Kenshin's honorI can't interfere Get up Kenshin Please_

There was nothing Yahiko could do except watch from the sidelines as the battle unfolded. Aoshi removed his comforting hand from the young swordsman's shoulders and turned his attention back to the two combatants. "Have faith in him"

Aoshi's words were soft but they hit Yahiko like a bomb dropped from Henya of the Juppon Gatana.

_Have faith in him? Kuso I'm standing here doubting Kenshin and it's Aoshi who has to reassure me? Has my opinion of Kenshin changed so much in these last five years that I honestly think he can't handle himself in a fight?_

Yahiko turned all his attention back to the fallen man. Using the powers of perception he'd learned from Kenshin, the young swordsman searched the former rurouni's body and spirit for the Battousai's legendary strength.

_Kenshin's the man I've always looked up to I've always wanted to be strong like him, so I could protect people who need protecting. And I used to have absolute faith in him Kami-sama five years ago I stood my ground as the giant Fuji brought his sword crashing down Why did I do that? Because I knew that Kenshin would protect me I knew that somehow he'd find a way to save us all._

"You're not this weak Battousai"

Broken from his internal monologue by Sanosuke's harsh comment, Yahiko couldn't help but wince at the tone and the message. But below the surface of Sano's words, the young swordsman thought he heard a note of pleading.

_It's strange hearing Sano call Kenshin the BattousaiBut I know he doesn't like this situation any more than we do. They're friends, they're not going to kill each other But if Kenshin doesn't do something, Sano's going to have to keep playing his role of Kenkaya Zanza until we're forced to stop him_

Sanosuke was on top of Kenshin now. The questions running through Yahiko's mind were about to be answered.

_What will Sano do?_

"We must stop him!" One of the police turned to his companions. The six men seemed to be in agreement and brandishing their clubs, they cautiously approached the ex-gangster.

"Stop you fools!" Chief Uramura reminded the men that he was in charge. "If Himura the Battousai can't defeat him, nothing you do will make a difference." The men lowered their weapons, despair written on their faces. "Have faith!"

_Have faith_

Yahiko felt it now. In the back of his mind he knew that things would work out.

_They have to They always do when Kenshin's around_

~//~

Kenshin felt the ex-gangster's powerful battle spirit and knew that he was standing over him, stalling for time. Kenshin squeezed his eyes shut, fighting against the dizziness that threatened to overpower him.

_That was a powerful blow he dealt me but I know he didn't intend to finish me with that one attack. I put so much effort into a quick move out of the path of his punch that I'm afraid the strain on my body distracted my ability to read my opponent That and I truly didn't expect Sano to try so hard to hit me, that I did not I underestimated him, and now we're both in trouble_

Kenshin forced his eyes open and found himself staring at the familiar black shoes and bandaged feet of his old friend.

_I must not allow myself to dismiss this fight anymore Sano is my friend, but right now the two of us have an audience of men and a formal police record to worry about. If things don't work out tonight, then the rest of Saitoh's mission will fail._

"Get up, Battousai" Sanosuke used the cold speech of his Zanza identity.

_And if Saitoh's mission fails, who knows what fate may befall the people of Japan_

"You're not this weak."

_His voice sounds cold, but deep down inside, Sanosuke's begging me to fight back He's doing everything he can to stall, but if he takes much longer, people may get suspicious._

"Perhaps you need a little help to get to your feet?"

Kenshin felt Sanosuke's calloused fingers slide through his hair. In an instant, he tightened his grip, causing each strand of hair to pull painfully against Kenshin's scalp. With brute strength, the ex-gangster pulled the former rurouni to his feet.

_For the sake of Japan I must defeat him_

~//~

Sanosuke quietly hoped that Kenshin understood.

_Grabbing a guy by his hair and hauling him to his feet isn't a very nice thing to dobut it _is _a Zanza thing to do and right now I must keep up appearances. Dammit Kenshin, get up fight back knock me down so we can put an end to this insanity._

As if Kenshin could hear his unspoken urgings, their eyes met and the red haired man nodded imperceptibly even though the movement had to cause him pain.

"For the sake of Japan" Kenshin's words were a mere whisper. "I'm sorry Sano"

Kenshin closed his eyes and for a brief moment, Sanosuke wondered if he was surrendering.

_I'm gonna have to hit him our audience won't keep buying this if I don't do something Hurry up Kenshin hurry up and fight back_

Sano slowly pulled back his right fist, noting the bright splotches of blood on his bandages as he did.

_But at least hitting you is gonna hurt both of us Kenshin I'm sorry. I promise I won't hit you hard_

Kenshin's violet eyes snapped open before Sanosuke could swing. The ex-gangster could immediately tell that something was different. Even the air seemed to be dancing with excitement and anticipation as Sanosuke tried to figure out what had changed.

_It's Kenshin's ken ki his fighting spirit is back_

A mysterious gust of wind whirled around the two of them, and Sanosuke realized that his thought was a horrible understatement.

_His ken ki isn't just BACK. It's back with a vengeance! I haven't felt anything like this since the time Enishi attacked the dojo Even the air is responding to his power!_

Before Sanosuke had any time to react, Kenshin focused all his fighting spirit with a mighty shout. Twigs and leaves snapped while particles of dirt exploded up from the ground. The ex-gangster's grip on the former rurouni's hair was torn away and the taller man had to use all his power to simply remain where he was standing. As he shielded his eyes and face with his forearms, Sanosuke felt his entire body being driven back by the wind and the amazing power radiating off the man once known as the Hitokiri Battousai.

~//~

_I never imagined he'd still have so much power_

Aoshi watched through squinted eyes as the force of Kenshin's ken ki pushed the ex-gangster. Sanosuke's feet dug small trenches in the ground as he slid back, powerless to stop his movement.

_His Hiten Mitsurugi is supposed to be ineffective now, but judging from his battle aura, he's still every bit as powerful as he was five years ago. Right now, I'd imagine he could pull off his succession technique if he wanted. His shout seems to have re-energized his body and soul_

Aoshi raised his arm to his face, warding off the stinging particles of sand that assaulted him.

_This man never ceases to amaze me Truly, he is the strongest._

~//~

Sanosuke wasn't sure if he should be excited or terrified.

_Now I've done it Kenshin has summoned up his old strength!_

The former rurouni finally stopped yelling and in response, the wind died down. Sanosuke slowly lowered his arms and cast a cautious glance in the direction of the red-haired man.

_A moment ago, he couldn't even get to his feet and now he's standing there looking like he's ready to kick my ass_

A hesitant lopsided grin turned up one corner of the ex-gangster's mouth.

_I was afraid I'd really finished him but it looks like Kenshin has overcome the limitations of his body. Of course, there's only one way to find out for sure_

"Are you done playing around Battousai!?" Sanosuke heard sharp intakes of breath from the police officers. His fearless attitude had obviously surprised them.

Kenshin didn't respond to his cocky question immediately. Slowly closing his eyes, the former rurouni took a deep breath and slid his sakabatou back into its sheath. "I'm not the Battousai anymore" The red-haired man opened his eyes and fixed their violet gaze intently on Sanosuke's light brown one. "You know that."

_You bet I do_

"Enough talk, Battousai. Here I come!"

_Zanza doesn't talk any more than he has to, Kenshin but I have a feeling that you're ready for my attack this time_

The ex-gangster pulled back his left fist and charged with a mighty battle cry. Kenshin didn't react, but Sanosuke could feel his every movement being analyzed.

_Let's see what you've got. Don't hold back on me_

Throwing his momentum and all his power into the blow, Sagara Sanosuke's fist flew through the air. It never connected.   
Himura Kenshin had been given the title of Battousai because he'd mastered the art of Battou Jutsu. In his days as a hitokiri, being able to kill a man with a single stroke often meant the difference between life and death.

"Battou Jutsu."

Drawing his sakabatou from its sheath with lighting speed, Kenshin brought it crashing against Sanosuke's ribcage in one fluid movement. The former rurouni and the ex-gangster both felt the bones give way as an audible crack resounded in the night air.   
Sanosuke felt himself flying through the air and once he hit the ground, his body continued to roll. When he finally came to a stop, he found himself staring up at a starry night sky. A full moon cast a soft glow and for a moment, Sanosuke wondered why he hadn't stopped to admire the celestial scenery before. The stars seemed to be dancing and spinning of their own accord, and the ex-gangster found them strangely intriguing.

~//~

Yahiko felt his jaw dropping once again. Not only had Kenshin made a miraculous 'recovery' but somehow he'd also managed a move that should have been impossible for him.

_Megumi said that his body couldn't take the strain of his old techniques But there's no doubt about it that was flawless Battou Jutsu. Poor Sanosuke_

The six police officers let out a raucous cheer and headed toward the subdued offender. Yahiko watched from his place beside the chief as Sanosuke took in his first shuddering breath. After being hit by Kenshin's attack, the ex-gangster had forgotten about simple necessities of life, like breathing.

_Looks like Kenshin pulled it off I feel foolish for doubting him._

Throwing Aoshi a satisfied grin, Yahiko slowly followed after the other police to arrest the 'criminal'. The men stopped in their tracks and the young swordsman darted around them to get a look at what had made them stop and gasp.

_Uh oh_

Against all common sense, Sanosuke was painfully getting to his feet. Yahiko could see an angry red welt across his ribs and the young swordsman knew he'd heard the sound of bone cracking when Kenshin's sakabatou had hit the ex-gangster.

_What's that idiot doing? That blow should have been enough to finish anyone. He's gotta be hurt, so why the hell is he getting back up? Our mission should be over!_

"Give it up Zanza!" Yahiko called over to him, hoping he could make him see reason. The ex-gangster's head turned in his direction and for a moment their eyes locked together. Yahiko was about to tell Sanosuke that the fight was over, but his words died in his throat when he saw the determination burning in the ex-gangster's eyes.

~//~

"Stay back boy. Unless you wanna get hurt."

Kenshin watched impassively as Sanosuke replied to Yahiko's order.

"Sano"

_I put all my strength into that attack but somehow he's gotten back to his feet. I didn't think it was possible, but apparently even his stamina has increased._

Yahiko and the six officers retreated to a safe distance and when Sanosuke was sure they wouldn't interfere, he turned his attention back to the former rurouni. A tense moment of silence passed between them.

"So you've finally decided to take me seriously?" The ex-gangster's tone was cold, but a genuine smile slowly appeared across his features.

"I always take you seriously" Kenshin said it and meant it.

Sanosuke allowed himself another moment of rest as he gingerly probed his ribcage. He winced slightly and then returned the pleased smile to his face. "That was a nice hit, Kenshin" He pulled his fists back and punched his knuckles together, face twisting into a malicious grin. "But you're gonna have to do better than that if you want to defeat me!"

Kenshin watched intently as Sanosuke opened his left hand and held his fingers extended.

_Now what's he up to?_

"Since you're not holding back, I'm not gonna hold back either Kenshin. You ready?" Sano slid one of his feet forward and continued to hold his hand open, preparing to attack with a move that Kenshin did not recognize.

_He's got something up his sleeve. What does he expect to do from such a distance? Unless_

An image of the fallen monk Anji holding a long dagger popped into Kenshin's head. Slamming it into the ground, the monk focused the power of the Futae no Kiwami and sent it shooting across the ground to slam into Sanosuke during their duel at Shishio's base.

_The Touate?_

And with that thought barely formed in Kenshin's mind, Sanosuke slammed his left hand into the ground. Dirt and rocks shot into the air as the shockwave made it's way toward the former rurouni.

Reacting instinctually, Kenshin swung the tip of his sakabatou across the ground.

"Do Ryu Sen!"

With a powerful heave, the red-haired man sent his own blast of rocks and dirt directly at the ex-gangster's oncoming attack. The force from the two distance attacks cancelled each other out and before the dust had a chance to settle, Kenshin rushed toward Sanosuke with blinding speed.

There was no hesitation from the ex-gangster as he drove his hand into the ground a second time. Charging head on toward the blast, Kenshin waited until the last minute and pushed off the ground, soaring up into the air.

_The touate provided cover for me to jump. I'll be able to attack him from above with my Ryu Tsui Sen and he'll never know what hit him._

As Kenshin descended, he pulled his sakabatou back and prepared to slam the dull edge of his blade against Sanosuke's shoulder. Unfortunately for Kenshin, the ex-gangster anticipated his attack.

With a roar, Sanosuke slammed his left fist against the ground. "Futae no Kiwami!" The ground erupted and Kenshin felt pieces of dirt and rock collide with his body. In an instant he was no longer falling down with gravity. Instead, he felt himself flying back up into the air surrounded by chunks of the earth that had been forcefully displaced by the ex-gangster's powerful double punch.

~//~

Sanosuke watched in amazement as Kenshin flew back up into the air.

_I blocked it I blocked that damn Ryu Tsui Sen of his! That'll teach Kenshin to hit me from above!_

The former rurouni flipped in midair and landed on his feet a short distance away from the ex-gangster. Sanosuke felt relief at seeing him land safely.

_It didn't hurt him Looks like the old Kenshin's really back. I know I'm supposed to let him beat me but I'm never going to get the chance to face Kenshin again. Just once, I want to be able to say that I held my own against him. If something crazy happens and I win I'll just collapse and let them arrest me. But from here on out, I'm going to give this everything I've got_

~//~

_He's giving this everything he's got._

Kenshin read the look of determination on Sagara Sanosuke's face.

_Some part of Sano won't let him throw this fightwhich means, I'm going to have to beat him for real. But this Sano is unlike the man I've fought twice before If I'm not careful, he might actually be able to defeat me_

Kenshin narrowed his eyes and gripped the handle of his sakabatou in resolution.

_Whatever happens, I'm going to fight honestly with Sano and not hold back on him. I can tell that's what he wants. I haven't had an opportunity to test my skills like this in the past five years so I'm curious to see if I can still perform all my old Hiten Mitsurugi techniques I hope you're ready Sano_

~//~

The showdown lasted only a few brief moments as the two combatants stood gauging each other and making up their minds to fight seriously. Reading the former rurouni's body language and facial expression, Sanosuke sensed that his friend was going to put everything he had into the battle.

The street fighter punched his fists together in excitement. "Let's go!"

_He's going to fight me for real! Somehow Kenshin has figured out how I feel he knows that I can't just give up this fight now I guess Kenshin has always understood me. He might be the only man alive today that does_

Covering the distance between them in a flash, the two best friends collided together in a blur of steel and fists. Full of complete understanding toward each other, each man attempted to land a blow that would defeat his opponent fair and square. From a safe distance, the other men watched in amazement as Kenshin and Sanosuke attacked, counterattacked, and dodged with speed that defied reason. Neither succeeded in striking the other as their battle carried them around Mr. Tani's courtyard.

"Is it just me, or are those two going at it for real?" Yahiko was back at Aoshi's side and he asked his question quietly enough so none of the other police would hear.

Keeping his attention riveted to the fight, the former okashira of the Oniwabanshu nodded his agreement and then voiced his thoughts. "They're reading each other perfectly I don't think I've ever seen two men fight who were so equally in tune with each other"

The moonlight glinted off Kenshin's sakabatou as he sliced through the air, barely missing the ex-gangster who dodged out of the way with reflexes honed by years of fighting. Not missing a beat, Sanosuke propelled himself back toward Kenshin and attempted to slam his fists into the red-haired man's face.

The former rurouni dodged his punches easily and danced around him looking for an opening. Thinking he'd found one, Kenshin swung his sakabatou in a horizontal arc attempting to hit Sanosuke in the side where his ribcage wouldn't take the brunt of the impact. The ex-gangster displayed his impressive new agility by leaping up into the air and out of the path of the blade. Using centrifugal force, Sanosuke flipped backwards out of Kenshin's range.

Kenshin rushed to meet him but suddenly found himself face to face with a wall of exploding flying debris. Upon landing, Sanosuke kicked the ground with the Futae no Kiwami and sent another blast of earth rocketing off around him in a growing circle. The attack's effect was similar in force to the touate but the range and circular destruction pattern was much harder to avoid.

Kenshin backpedaled faster than normal men could run and he kept the shockwave from colliding with his body. More preoccupied with outdistancing the blast, the rurouni's powers of perception barely helped him sense the presence running up behind the moving wall.

Eyes flashing dangerously, the former gangster leapt straight through the debris, ignoring the stinging rocks and chunks of dirt that Kenshin was trying so hard to avoid. His red headband whipped menacingly as Sanosuke descended toward his opponent with his right fist pulled back.

~//~

Kenshin didn't allow himself time to think as he dodged out of the ex-gangster's path. As Sanosuke crashed into the earth he drove his fist into the ground creating a large crater and effectively stopping the wave of destruction from crashing over him. Kenshin continued backing up until the force from the ex-gangster's attack finally died out.

_He's mastered attacks that radiate in a circular pattern as well as ones that shoot out in one direction. If I'm not mistaken, even Anji himself never perfected so many different applications of the Futae no Kiwami._

Kenshin charged back toward his friend as Sanosuke unburied his hand and stood in the middle of the crater he'd just created. The tall man braced himself for the oncoming attack as his loose white gi flapped violently in the wind.

_If I want to defeat him, I'm going to have to move faster and cause enough damage to overpower his stamina and natural resistance._

Planning his attack as he cleared the distance between them, Kenshin gripped his sakabatou firmly. "Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu" Once he was next to Sanosuke, the legendary Hitokiri Battousai moved his sword so quickly that the blade seemed to be flying. "Ryu Sou Sen!"

His rapid attack randomly searched out the vital locations on Sanosuke's body and pummeled them. The ex-gangster's body rocked with the multiple blows.

~//~

_Shit! There's no way I can block all these attacks._

Sanosuke gritted his teeth as he tried to deflect the rain of blows with his forearms and found himself failing miserably.

_I can't pull off the Futae no Kiwami like this that only leaves me one option_

Lashing out with his left hand, Sanosuke felt the sakabatou slam into his arm. When it connected the ex-gangster found the blade with his hand and wrapped his fingers around it. The sharp edge of the sakabatou bit deeply into his palm but the street fighter only tightened his grip and brought the flying sword to a complete stop.

The look of amazement on Kenshin's face was payment enough for the blood trickling out of his body.

"Sano"

"Impressed Kenshin?" Sanosuke grinned evilly as he continued to hold onto the sakabatou for all he was worth. "I had five years to come up with a way to counter each one of your attacks." The sakabatou shook as Kenshin tried to pull the sword out of the ex-gangster's vice-like grip. "You won't be able to get your sword free in time This fight is over!"

Yanking hard on the blade, Sanosuke pulled the red-haired man toward him and brought his forehead cracking against the shorter man's in a brutal head butt. Kenshin staggered backwards as a trickle of red traced down his face and diverged to run down both sides of his nose.

_He managed to stay standing and he didn't lose his grip on the sakabatouI'm impressed, but I don't think he'll be able to take another head butt. Sorry Kenshin, but it looks like I'm gonna win this one_

Sanosuke began to pull his friend toward him for his final blow but Kenshin focused all his strength and twisted the blade in the ex-gangster's hand. The sakabatou gouged a deep gash in his palm as Kenshin ripped it free. The tall man had just enough time to contemplate the painful spray of blood before he felt Kenshin's sakabatou slam into the base of his skull.

~//~

"Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu Ryu Kan Sen." Kenshin followed through with his blow and then held his sakabatou poised in the air as he listened to the sound of human flesh coming into forceful contact with solid stone. His back was facing Sanosuke but he did not need to turn around to know that his friend had collided into one of the large statues lining Tani's pathway.

_After freeing my sword from his slippery grasp, I stepped to his side while spinning and used the momentum to send him flying. The Ryu Kan Sen is one of my most useful counterattacks not to mention that the force of the blow is focused on a part of the body that is very weak_

Kenshin slowly lowered his sword from the air and inspected the bright red blood that traced down it. Old habit took over and the former hitokiri flicked the blade once, sending the liquid splattering off into the grass and out of his sight. He was about to sheath his sword when he heard the sound of crumbling rock.

_It can't behe can't still be on his feet_

The red-haired man glanced behind him in amazement as the ex-gangster pried his upper body out of a large dent in the base of one of Tani's stone statues.

_Sanosuke flew face first into that statue and dented it? Either that's crafted out of a weak material or his head is tougher than steel_

Kenshin briefly touched the bleeding wound on his forehead while contemplating which one of his ideas was correct.

_His head did seem pretty toughI hope that the true reason lies somewhere in the middle though At any rate_

Kenshin narrowed his eyes.

_My attack should have finished him off_

The tall man took a staggering step away from the statue and then grabbed his head with both hands. A sickening popping noise echoed through the courtyard as the ex-gangster realigned his vertebrae. Sanosuke turned and faced Kenshin once he was finished. Blood trickled down one side of his face and when he smiled, the red-haired man watched a small trail of blood escape the corner of one lip and drip down his chin.

_I think I've underestimated him again_

Holding one bloody hand up near his face, Sanosuke motioned with his index finger for Kenshin to continue their battle.

~//~

"Dammit he's a complete idiot" Yahiko hissed under his breath as he watched Sanosuke urge Kenshin to continue their fight.

"That fact is undeniable" Aoshi's bluntness caused Yahiko to grin. "However it's obvious that he wants to put everything he has into this fight. This battle is a contest of willpower just as much as it is a contest of physical strength and stamina."

"And rooster-head's will just won't let him lose perfect if they keep this up they're gonna end up knocking each other out or worse" Yahiko narrowed his eyes as Kenshin dashed across the courtyard toward the ex-gangster.

~//~

Sanosuke surprised Kenshin with his mobility as he darted around the base of the statue. The former rurouni continued advancing at top speed until he heard the unmistakable sound of the Futae no Kiwami's double blow. The statue exploded and sent shards of marble and stone shooting toward Kenshin like a fistful of Misao's kunai.

_I understand that you won't let yourself lose you're desire to win has always helped you overcome your limitations. But I'm going to end this Sano right now_

Not even breaking his stride, Kenshin twirled his sakabatou in a circular motion, deflecting each one of the shards before it could hit him. Escaping from his lips, Kenshin felt a battle cry growing in intensity as he charged the last ten yards to his opponent. When he was within Sanosuke's range, the ex-gangster slammed his right foot against the ground and created another circular shockwave. Kenshin anticipated the attack and shot himself straight into the air.

Whether Sanosuke wasn't ready for it or simply too stunned from his injuries, he failed to avoid Kenshin's attack.

"Ryu Tsui"

Kenshin's sakabatou slammed down on the ex-gangster's right shoulder and the minute the former rurouni felt his feet touching solid earth he crouched low and spun, bracing his sword against his left hand. Propelling himself off the ground, Kenshin rammed the blade into the place where Sanosuke's jaw met his neck.

"Sho Sen!"

Knocked back by the force of the blow, Sanosuke staggered but remained on his feet. His head and shoulders were thrown back and it seemed to take him every muscle in his body to pull them forward to their natural positions.

_My first hit dislocated his shoulder and my second hit should have blocked the passage of his windpipe temporarily. Where is he getting the strength to continue standing?_

~//~

_I can't lose._

The pain was too bothersome to pay any attention to.

_Kenshin's overcome his weakness so I can too Before this fight started, I thought he wouldn't even be able to use his Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu but he's proved that theory wrong. This just makes me even more impressed with him So now I have to work even harder to impress him the best way would be to win against him_

Clutching an unsteady hand to his right arm, Sanosuke jerked down and realigned the bones and ligaments of his dislocated shoulder. He only dully registered the excruciating agony the procedure caused.

_He hasn't defeated me I can still fight and there's a chance that I can still beat him._

Shaking his head once to clear the blood from his eyes, the ex-gangster clenched his fists and faced his red-haired friend.

_Last man standing wins Kenshin_

~//~

Kenshin stepped back in surprise when his tall, spiky haired friend pulled back his fist, roared, and charged.

_So you're not going to give up until you can't move hey Sano? I suppose I shouldn't have expected anything less_

Kenshin lifted his sakabatou and rushed to meet the oncoming charge.

_With my next move, I'll defeat you._

"Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu Kuzu Ryu Sen!"

Kenshin's sakabatou seemed to become nine separate weapons and each one of them found their mark as the two warriors crashed together.

~//~

_That attack is second only to his succession technique_

Sanosuke was vaguely aware that he was still on his feet. His entire body was screaming out against him, but it wasn't the first time he'd ignored a little pain.

_Who would have thought that he'd be able to do such a difficult move?_

"Sanosuke I'm truly impressed." Kenshin stood before him and the ex-gangster wasn't entirely sure how long he'd been there. It took an incredible amount of effort to lift his head to meet the former rurouni's violet gaze. The bones and muscles of his neck felt like they were grinding against each other in protest. "I've never seen anyone get hit by the Kuzu Ryu Sen and remain on their feet, that I have not."

Sanosuke tried to smile like a cocky fool, but even the muscles in his face didn't seem to be responding to his orders.

"I'm afraid that's the conclusion of our battle" Kenshin seemed to read his physical state perfectly. "You're a very powerful man and I never want to have to fight you again, that I do not."

"It's not" The words escaped straight out of Sano's partially opened mouth with hardly any movement from his jaw.

"What's that Sanosuke?" Kenshin took a step closer trying to discern what the taller man was trying to say.

"It's not over."

_Pull yourself together Sanosuke you're still on your feet._

"I'm still standing"

Kenshin's eyes twinkled in amusement. Gone was the gleam that Sanosuke had been privileged to witness in the former rurouni's gaze while the two of them had been fighting with everything they had.

_But I guess it's not so bad to have the old friendly Kenshin back_

"C'mon fight me I'm not defeated." Mustering every ounce of strength left in his body, Sanosuke took one faltering step toward his red haired friend.

Kenshin blinked in astonishment. "You can still move?" The legendary Hitokiri Battousai grinned from ear to ear. "Forgive me for saying this, but you are one tough bastard, that you are."

Sanosuke wanted to laugh. He wanted to stop with the Zanza show, break down, laugh his head off, and collapse into the dirt. The reciprocated look of amusement in Kenshin's eyes told Sano that his friend was thinking the same thing.

_After that incredible fight, the two of us are still friends He understands me and I understand him It's just like Outa said, there's no way he'd be mad at me Too bad we've still got an audience that expects me to be the evil Kenkaya Zanza_

Sanosuke was partially aware that more men had begun to fill the courtyard. He figured it was Chou and his backup police force. They'd be 'discovering' the illegal documents and other contraband the crooked politician was sure to have lying around his mansion.

_So everything has worked out except this last bit of business between Kenshin and I_

Sliding his feet along the ground, the ex-gangster eventually cleared the six-foot distance between him and his friend. Kenshin stood his ground and watched with a look of complete understanding. Something else glinted in his eyes, and by the time Sanosuke finally stood in front of him, the ex-gangster realized that Kenshin was truly impressed.

_He's not mad at me for continuing this fight even though I should have backed off earlier I did it. I proved to him what I'm made of I've impressed the man that has always impressed me_

Sanosuke pulled back his left fist and swung with all the strength left in his body, but Kenshin caught the punch easily. The powerful ex-gangster's strength had been reduced to that of a small child.

_Looks like Kenshin's defeated me again Guess it doesn't matter though that was one hell of a fight_

Lowering his voice so only Sano could hear, Kenshin spoke. "You've done well Sano I've not fought such a challenging battle in the last five years. Honestly, I wasn't sure if I'd be able to pull it off But it was your strength that inspired me to overcome my physical weakness." Kenshin paused a moment as he continued gripping the ex-gangster's extended fist. "It seems a certain lady doctor's predictions weren't entirely correct about me that it does."

"Megumi" As thoughts of that 'certain lady doctor' popped into the ex-gangster's head he felt the strength flowing out of his body.

_Oops Why do I get the feeling that Megumi is going to have some strong words with me tomorrow?_

His knees buckled and Sanosuke felt himself falling forward into the waiting arms of his best friend. Kenshin stopped his decent and kept his dead weight from crashing to the earth.

_At least there's still gonna be a tomorrow just like I'd promised her It'll be nice to wake up and have her near_

Sanosuke's vision was slowly darkening at the edges and from his extensive experience he knew he was about to lose consciousness.

_I'll just have to make sure to sleep until she arrives_

"Rest now Sano everything's going to be alright."

With the rurouni's last comment ringing in his ears, Sanosuke contentedly slipped into peaceful oblivion.

-----------------------

*Jumps for Joy* You guys have no idea how difficult that was!! I know I said I was busy, but even when I did work on the chapters I didn't make any headway. *sigh* But it's finished... and I hope everyone enjoyed it. Not quite as genki as the rest of my fic eh?

Well, tomorrow I'm heading home for Chistmas Break... that means there will be other things getting in the way of my writing. There's one thing that will make the difference between me posting or not posting in this next month... And what is that one thing you ask?

**REVIEWS!**

I'm not writing for myself here people. I've got the story right here. *taps head and computer at the same time* You wanna know what's going to happen next? Please let me know what you think of the things you've already read. It takes a lot of time to write (as I'm sure many of you know from experience) and while it takes a bit of your time to read it will only take another moment of your time to review. Yet that review will help propel me through the next chapter. Engage me, astound me, challenge me, but most importantly, write a review!!

(and when you're finished here, go check out the amazing stories from my favorite authors: Karina Kineshi, M.Kasshoku, Omni82, Mir, and eri!)  


Next Chapter: Three farewells, aftermath of the fight, some sap, some K+K! You won't wanna miss it! 


	18. Chapter 17: Aftermath

Author: Arashi (Arashi@kenkaya.com)

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Beta Readers: MKasshoku and Karina Kineshi

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin nor am I making any money off this story!

-----------------------

**Chapter 17: Aftermath**

Sitting alone in the cool night air, a young raven-haired women watched as the wind snatched two leaves from a nearby tree. Summer was halfway over and soon more leaves would be falling, but for now, only a few scattered bits of greenery could be found separated from the trees that housed them. It wasn't terribly unusual seeing leaves floating in the breeze, but something about these two particular ones captured the interest of the young woman. In the soft glow from her lantern, she noticed that the two leaves appeared to be dancing together. Torn from their home, the leaves found each other in the turbulent wind and no matter how the breeze tried to tear them apart they remained twirling around each other. As they disappeared from her sight into the dark sky, Himura Kaoru felt an unbidden sigh escape her lips.

_It's silly but those leaves remind me of Kenshin and I We both had hard lives but somehow we found each other. He's my support, my love, my life I know we'll never be separated again but at times like this I can't help but worry about him._

Glancing up towards the illuminated heavens, Kaoru silently hoped that her husband would be all right, and that he'd be returning to her soon.

"Mind if I sit with you for a while?"

Kaoru turned at the sound of Megumi's voice. She let a bright smile light up her face as she nodded. "Sure Megumi." Kaoru hoped that her smile hid her previous thoughts from the other woman.

_I'm sure she's got enough things on her mind I don't want to bother her with my own concerns. Kenshin's coming back to me but Sanosuke is going to be going away after this night is over_

The lady doctor gracefully gathered her sleeping yukata around her as she sat down on the back porch beside the female kendo instructor. "I know I told you I'd try and get some sleep but I'm really not tired right now." Megumi folded her hands in her lap. "I thought maybe we could wait for Ken-san together?"

"If you're sure you're not tired, I don't mind the company."

Company was one thing, but if Himura Kaoru expected immediate conversation, she would have been disappointed. Though the two women had reached a level of understanding and friendship through the course of the past six years, the air was heavy with their unspoken thoughts and concerns.

_I'm sure we're thinking about the same things I just don't know if she wants to talk about them._

Kaoru threw her companion a sidelong glance, trying to decipher the look on the lady doctor's face. Seeing the motion out of the corner of her eye, Megumi turned her head toward her friend and smiled slowly. "You're worried about Kenshin aren't you?"

Hearing her thoughts voiced by the other woman, Kaoru managed to nod her head slightly before focusing her attention on her hands resting in her lap. She felt somewhat guilty. "I know everything will be fine but I guess I can't help but worry about him."

"You know how Kenshin hates to make you worry."

_Megumi's right Kenshin's always trying to assure me that everything is fine even when it's really not. Maybe that's what makes me worry so much?_

Tearing herself away from her own thoughts, Kaoru lifted her gaze to meet Megumi's quiet scrutiny.

_But while I sit here worrying about Kenshin Megumi is sitting here being strong I know she's hurting inside. She needs to talk to someone and I'm just the woman for the job._

"It's just Kenshin's way I suppose." Finding nothing in particular to capture her interest, Kaoru focused on the great expanse of the night sky. "He's always thinking about other people. Even though it can be frustrating it's still reassuring when he tells me that everything's all right. I guess I really do appreciate his concern."

"It must be nice having a man that always tries to comfort you." Kaoru would have had to be deaf not to hear the longing in Megumi's voice. "Some men out there do things without thinking about the effect it will have on the people close to them"

"Sometimes it's not their choice though" Kaoru knew exactly who Megumi's comment was aimed at. Some part of the young wife felt the need to stand up for their mutual friend. "Sanosuke had plenty of reasons to leave Japan I'm sure I don't think that"

The lady doctor interrupted Kaoru's further comments with the slight wave of her hand. In that one motion, Kaoru knew that the other woman had forgiven the ex-gangster for his sudden departure and five year absence.

"I know he had his reasons. I can't and don't hold it against him for leaving. I may have at first but now that he's back I understand that it was just something he had to do." Megumi smiled wistfully. "And in a way, I'm glad he left. It gave him time to think to put his life together It's just that I don't know how he can turn his back on everything he's returned to and agree to help out a man that he despises and a government he's always complaining about. He's leaving us all again and somehow it's much harder this time" Megumi trailed off like a boat that had lost the wind in its sails.

"I know why" An intense questioning look from the other woman enticed Kaoru to complete her unfinished statement. "I know why it's harder for youthis time."

"Why is that?"

Kaoru wasn't sure if Megumi was amused or irritated, but she decided to venture forth despite the possible consequences of the comment she was about to make. "Because this time You're in love with him."

~//~

Collapse was imminent. Complete exhaustion and injury threatened to claim consciousness. Staggering through familiar streets, a lone figure clutched to walls and fences for support.

_I'm almost there just a little further_

Focus was necessary to keep moving. Overcoming physical weakness and limitations was all a matter of willpower.

_So how come I'm having so much trouble _now_?_

Radiating pain, darkening vision, a lightheaded sensation, and ringing ears threw off the lone man's senses, but somehow through his fading perception he made out a sound that sent renewed vigor coursing through his veins.

_Laughter that's Kaoru. I'm almost home_

~//~

At first, Megumi felt shocked. She felt like she'd been caught doing something she wasn't supposed to be doing. The fact that her friend knew exactly what was going on in her head seemed impossible. But gradually the lady doctor realized how much things had changed and how much evidence there was of the change.

_Sano and I have been inseparable since he got back How could I possibly think Kaoru wouldn't notice these things? In another lifetime, I might have tried to hide my true feelings from my friends but not anymore._

Megumi felt the beginnings of a genuine smile tighten the muscles of her face.

Almost instantaneously, Kaoru's somewhat hesitant look vanished to be replaced by a mirror image. "I knew it! You do love him!" The younger woman's eyes sparkled in the moonlight.

There was no sense in denying the truth. "Was it that obvious?" Megumi briefly wondered what made her act so 'clever' around her friends. Perhaps there was some truth to Sanosuke's comparison of her to a fox?

In response to her question, Kaoru laughed. It was a familiar sound, full of warmth and amusement. "Of _course_ it was obvious! Have you been watching how the two of you act around each other? You'd either have to be blind or _Aoshi _not to see it!" At that comment, Megumi couldn't help but join in the laughter.

In an unanticipated move, Kaoru threw her hands around the lady doctor's neck. "Oh Megumi, I'm so happy for you!" After a brief moment, the two pulled apart. Their eyes were full of the laughter that had disappeared from the night air. "Have you told him yet?" Kaoru leaned in attentively but didn't wait for a response. "What did he say? Is he in love with you as well? Are you two going to take your relationship to the next level? Do you think he's going to behave himself now?"

The string of questions continued and in her excited state, the female kendo instructor was impossible to stop. Almost

"What's goin' on?" Hair ruffled from sleep, Misao stepped out onto the back porch and her presence alone managed to interrupt the barrage of questions.

Kaoru quickly turned apologetic and put her hand over her mouth. "I'm sorry Misao. We woke you up didn't we?"

"No big deal. I can usually sleep through anything" The young okashira rubbed the sleep from her eyes with the back of her hand and yawned. "But I swear I heard someone say Aoshi and I thought" The ninja girl glanced around hopefully.

"No sorry Misao no one's returned yet." Kaoru informed her.

"Oh" Plopping down ungracefully next to the kendo instructor, Misao leaned back, casually supported herself with her arms and dangling her legs over the edge of the raised porch. "So what were you two laughing about?"

Kaoru immediately remembered the wonderful news she'd just been privileged to discover. "Megumi and Sanosuke are in love!"

Whether or not Megumi wanted Misao to hear the news at that exact moment, there was nothing she could do to pluck the words out of the air.

_What's done is done even if what Kaoru says is only a partial truth I know Sanosuke cares for me but I'm not sure if he feels the same way that I feel now_

"It's about time!!" Misao's excited voice reached a volume that easily rivaled Kaoru's. "You two have been beating around the bush for as long as I've known you!"

Megumi felt her eyes widening, surprised by the weasel girl's comment and following laughter. Her self-control quickly returned and she felt the need to defend herself.

_And sometimes the best defense is an attack_

"Look who's talking, _weasel girl_." Feeling particularly sly, Megumi continued. "How long have you known Shinomori-san? You two haven't made any progress in _your_ relationship." Misao blinked with a dumbfounded expression on her face, but Megumi continued her good-natured onslaught. "Sanosuke's been _gone_ for the past five years Unlike a certain stone faced man who never smiles."

Misao started sputtering. "He He He does _too_ smile! And yes, I've known Aoshi for a long time." The ninja girl jumped to her feet and clenched her fist in resolution as she turned to face her two friends. "And I decided something yesterday I think you two should know about! I'm going to confront Aoshi with my feelings!"

Kaoru and Megumi's jaws almost dropped. Seemingly unaware of their reactions, the excited woman turned and started pacing in front of them as she continued.

"I'm going to tell him tomorrow when I say goodbye. That way he'll have plenty of time to think things through. Aoshi's a complicated man and I can't expect him to work out his emotions all in one instant. By the time he comes back from Hokkaido I hope he'll have things figured out for himself." Kaoru and Megumi weren't sure if she was talking to them or if she was simply having difficulty with her internal monologue. Stopping suddenly, Misao turned her attention back to the two of them and surprised them again by shouting. "But damn it! How old am I? How long does he think I'm going to wait?"

"Is everything alright?" Tsubame appeared at the sliding door behind Megumi and Kaoru. "I heard shouting." Timidly the young waitress stepped out onto the back porch.

Three pairs of eyes turned to greet her and once again Kaoru found herself apologizing. "Oh Tsubame I'm sorry. We were just having a bit of a discussion."

Misao's mouth sealed shut in guilt as she realized it had been her outbursts that had disturbed the girl from her slumber.

"Oh no it's alright. I I was having trouble sleeping anyway." Gently lowering herself to sit next to Kaoru, Tsubame did her best to convince them that what she said was true. When that failed, she changed the subject. "So what were you all talking about?"

Grinning mischievously, the weasel girl stepped back to the porch and took a seat next to the young waitress. "So Tsubame" Megumi and Kaoru remained silent as they waited to see what was on Misao's mind. "How are you and Yahiko doing?"

Blushing immediately, Tsubame was too confused to form a complete thought. "Wha? I um Yahiko?"

Misao nodded as though she fully understood exactly what Tsubame was failing to communicate. "Yeah, Yahiko. Ya know, the handsome young swordsman with the spiky dark hair?" The okashira playfully nudged the waitress.

Megumi and Kaoru covered their mouths to hide their smiles and quiet laughter. Tsubame floundered in her uncertainty. "Um Misao-san? What exactly are you asking me?"

"You and Yahiko are a real couple now right?"

Tsubame nodded hesitantly. "Yes I think so. We've been together for the past five years and well"

"You can't let it go at that Tsubame. Has he ever asked you to be his girlfriend? Do you do romantic things together? Has he ever kissed you?" Misao shredded all boundaries of decency leaving Tsubame completely at a loss for words.

"MISAO!!" Megumi and Kaoru were too surprised by the okashira's comments to do anything but yell at her.

Laughing lightly, the ninja girl jumped off the porch to stand in front of her friends. "I'm just teasing you Tsubame! Relax."  
  
The words were too insignificant to take back all traces of her earlier questions. Tsubame was lost in thought and after a moment she slowly raised her head to meet Kaoru's questioning look. "Am I _really_ Yahiko's girlfriend?" The waitress suddenly looked like she was about to cry.

Kaoru placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Of course you are Tsubame." The kendo instructor left it up to the lady doctor to shoot an accusatory look at the ninja.

Misao scratched the back of her head in embarrassment. "Um I didn't mean anything by that Tsubame. We were all just talking about our 'men' so I thought we'd hear what you had to say on the subject."

"That's right" Megumi chimed in. "After all, you and Yahiko have one of the best relationships out of any of us."

Tsubame seemed somewhat comforted by their words but there was a new uncertainty in her face. "But we've never even kissed before. Does that mean he doesn't love me?"

Misao smacked her forehead, instantly aware of the damage that she'd unwittingly caused.

"Of course not Tsubame. Kissing isn't important. We all know how much Yahiko cares about you." Kaoru assured her.

"Do you think that he doesn't _want _to kiss me?"

"Tsubame-chan." Megumi decided to take matters into her own hands. "Don't worry about it. I'm sure Yahiko will kiss you when he's ready. He's still young and inexperienced and the male population matures slower than we do. Give him time." Seeing that her words were having a positive effect on the young waitress, Megumi decided to finish by lightening the mood. "And don't worry. You'll have your first kiss well before the age of 21."

"Ack!" The twenty-one year old okashira jumped angrily. "What's _that_ supposed to mean?"

Tsubame and Kaoru giggled as Megumi and Misao launched into a full-blown argument. Kaoru knew they were doing it to try and cheer up the young waitress and a quick glance at the smiling girl told her that their efforts were not wasted.

Halfway through a relative comparison between the lady doctor's age and her own, Misao suddenly stopped and glanced toward the house.

The change in her demeanor had Kaoru instantly on alert. "What is it Misao?"

"Did you hear that?" Misao seemed distracted. "I think I just heard the front gate" Stopping as realization struck, the okashira's eyes widened.

The four women were on their feet in half a heartbeat, racing around to the front of the house. The gate was opened and lying facedown and unmoving on the ground ten feet in front of it was a familiar red-haired form.

Kaoru felt fear rising up from some unknown depth but the strange mental paralysis that threatened to overtake her did not interfere with her legs. "KENSHIN!" She covered the distance between them in an instant, beating both the doctor and the ninja to his side. Collapsing into the dirt beside him, she quickly reached out and touched the side of his face. "Oh Kenshin" His eyes were closed and blood and dirt mingled freely on his cheek and forehead. "Kami-sama Kenshin, speak to me!"

"Tsubame, go get a bucket of fresh water." Being a doctor gave Megumi an automatic advantage in certain situations. She'd been trained to separate herself from situations that would cause other people to stand around in shock. "Misao, fetch my medicine chest." Without waiting to see if her orders were being carried out, she dropped down beside the husband and wife and swiftly appraised the situation. A quick check told her that Kenshin was breathing regularly.

_I can see no visible wounds beside this one on his forehead. He's unconscious, but he's not in any immediate danger. Nothing appears to be broken, and it seems he made it all the way to the dojo under his own power_

"Kaoru, help me turn him over."

The other woman nodded hastily and assisted as the lady doctor carefully lifted and placed the unconscious man on his back. Moaning slightly at the movement, a pair of violet eyes flickered open and rested on the raven-haired woman hovering over him.

"Kaoru?" His voice was soft and weak, but the fact that he was conscious and able to communicate helped alleviate some of Megumi's remaining fears.

"Kenshin!!" Kaoru wasn't sure what to do so she deftly took one of his hands in hers. "I'm right here. Don't worry everything is going to be fine" Glancing pleadingly at the lady doctor, the young wife waited for some kind of sign that would tell her everything really would be all right.

Experienced hands pulled open the loose gi and probed muscles and bones for injury. Megumi nodded slightly as she worked, hoping that that simple movement would assuage the other woman's fears.

"Kaoru I'm sorry" Kenshin continued speaking slowly. "I'll be fine so please don't worry" Having said his piece, the former rurouni's eyes closed and he slipped back into unconsciousness.

"Kenshin" Kaoru's eyes started stinging with moisture as she felt her husband's hand go limp

"Kaoru, help me get him inside." After completing her preliminary examination, Megumi knew it would be safe to move her new patient.

_Now I need to get him somewhere clean and bright where I can take care of him properly._

The other woman nodded and together, they pulled the former rurouni up between them and headed toward the house.

~//~

Something cool pressed against his forehead and Kenshin tentatively opened his eyes. A familiar ceiling slowly came into focus, and for a moment, the former rurouni wondered how he'd ended up back at his house.

_The last thing I remember is_

Before he could complete his thought, another welcome sight came into his view.

_Kaoru_

"Kenshin? Are you awake?" The worried face of his wife imposed itself into his field of vision. She lifted the cool wet cloth from his forehead to get a better look at him and a careful smile turned the corners of her lips when she realized that his eyes were open. Kenshin wouldn't have dared to ask for it, but somehow he was back in the safety of his own home in the company of the one person he'd do anything to be with.

"Kaoru" He felt her warm and delicate hands slide into his own. Closing his eyes, he inhaled deeply of her familiar scent. He smiled, assuring Kaoru that he was still conscious.

"You're alright Kenshin." Her voice wavered slightly, but there was genuine assurance behind it. "Megumi says you'll be fine." Kenshin made his own appraisal of his physical condition. His face and forehead throbbed, but he figured the injuries looked worse than they actually felt. His right shoulder was tightly bandaged and he felt a dull ache from both his feet.

Opening his eyes again, Kenshin fixed their violet gaze on the beautiful woman who watched him with concern. "She's right Kaoru. I'm fine." Mustering his most confident smile, he tightened his hold on his wife's hand. "So you don't need to worry about me any more You look tired. Didn't you get any sleep?"

"Oh Kenshin" She squeezed his hand gently but a quiet sadness touched her face. "You're always worrying about others" Forcing herself to brighten up she continued. "Why don't you try worrying about yourself sometimes? Then I wouldn't have to worry so much"

"Kaoru" He let go of her hand so he could reach up and traced the lines of her face. "I'm sorry I wasn't careful. Things shouldn't have ended up the way they did. I let them get out of my control." Kaoru placed her own hand over his and held it against her cheek.

"It's alright Kenshin. The important thing is you're fine. And we're together."

_Kami-sama she is so beautiful beautiful, pure, and loving. What did I do to deserve her?_

"You know something?" Kenshin traced his thumb tenderly over soft pale skin. "I love you."

The effect of his words was instantaneous. His wife smiled radiantly and slowly pulled his hand away from her face as she leaned toward him. "Oh Kenshin how could I not know?" She gently brushed a clump of his fiery red bangs out of his face. "I'm reminded every day." Saving him the trouble of trying to sit, Kaoru brought her face to his. "And just so _you_ don't forget" She planted a tender kiss on his bandaged forehead. "I love you, with all my heart Himura Kenshin" Her second kiss found his lips, with a little help from the former rurouni.

~//~

Standing outside the Himuras' bedroom, Megumi tactfully waited until they finally pulled apart before she stepped inside the room with her armful of supplies. "You're finally awake I see."

"Good morning Megumi-dono." Kenshin smiled cheerfully; momentarily making the lady doctor forget the condition they'd found him in only hours before.

"How are you feeling?" She knelt beside his futon and placed an experienced hand over his forehead to check for signs of a fever.

"Much better now, Megumi-dono. Thanks to you."

"No need to thank me, Ken-san. Besides, everyone helped." Satisfied with his temperature, Megumi began to unwind the bandages from his forehead so she could replace them. "Tsubame and Misao have been running errands for me all night and would have stayed up right beside Kaoru if we didn't force them to get some sleep."

Kaoru confirmed the comment with a smile. "You should have seen Misao. She tried to convince the two of _us_ to rest while _she_ looked after you." Kenshin didn't bother to hide his amusement.

"Well, now that you're awake you and I need to talk about your current condition." Megumi finished wrapping fresh bandages around his forehead. "We can talk alone if you prefer." The lady doctor seemed hesitant to begin with Kaoru still in the room.

The former rurouni wasn't sure what kind of news she was going to give him, but he did know one thing. "Kaoru needs to hear whatever you have to say to me, Megumi-dono. Please proceed."

Sighing, Megumi folded her hands in her lap. "Well then, Ken-san I suppose it really doesn't matter" Reaching beside her, she picked up one of her medical sheets that she'd used to record his injuries. "You've got a minor concussion and abrasion on your forehead. This and the bruises on the side of your face were the easiest to discover and treat I'm afraid your other injuries are giving me a bit of trouble." She paused as she tried to decipher some of her hastily jotted notes. "It seems you've strained the muscles and ligaments in your right arm and shoulder causing some swelling that I'm trying to reduce by wrapping, elevation if possible, and ice. You'll need to keep your arm in a sling for a while and refrain from using it as much as possible."

Kenshin nodded, quietly urging the doctor to continue her assessment.

"Your feet have sustained injury I really can't tell for sure yet the extent of the damage but I want you to stay off them for the next couple of days at the very least. I'll be able to tell more after I've taken a better look at them." Megumi paused as she continued looking over the piece of paper. After a brief moment, she placed it on the ground next to her. "These are the worst of your injuries but I'm afraid that your entire body has suffered strain of one sort or another. And now I need to ask you a few questions."

Kenshin nodded, fully prepared to answer her to the best of his ability.

"Ken-san" Her professional demeanor slowly faded. "What exactly happened last night? I thought you and Sanosuke were putting on a show? Were you attacked by someone else?" Kenshin noticed the strain and urgency in her voice. "Please don't tell me that Sano did this to you"

As the lady doctor trailed off, the former rurouni realized the true reason behind Megumi's desire to speak with him alone. The woman's invincible wall was crumbling around her.

"Megumi-dono it's not what you think my injuries are my fault, and mine alone. Sanosuke is not to blame."

"That damn rooster" Megumi clenched her fists, bunching the fabric of her yukata in her grasp. "I told him to take it easy on you why doesn't he ever listen to anyone?" There was a slight quiver in her voice, but Megumi vowed that she would not break down in front of her friends.

_Never again if I can help it and definitely not over _him_ how is it that he can cause me so much emotional turmoil? He is going to get a piece of my mind today oh yes_

"Please don't be angry with Sano. This isn't his fault. My injuries are a result of attempting to use my old techniques, that they are. I brought this upon myself." Kenshin seemed eager to take the blame.

Kaoru interrupted, coming in at her husband's defense. "Oh Kenshin how can you say this is your fault? The way I see it, it's neither your fault _nor_ Sanosuke's fault. Can we please just drop the subject?" The raven-haired woman glanced up towards the doctor.

Megumi brooded silently for a moment before opening her mouth to speak. "I'd bet my last yen that this is _indeed_ rooster-head's fault. You don't have to cover for him Ken-san. I suspected he'd try something crazy like fighting you for real. In response you had to push yourself beyond your limits."

_Boy is he gonna get it_ The lady doctor started fuming.

"Megumi-dono" Kenshin attempted to get her attention and failed miserably.

"I tried to explain your current limitations but would he listen? No!"

"Megumi-dono could I just"

Megumi ignored the former rurouni as she continued. "And now you're going to have to remain in bed for who-knows-how-long while he goes gallivanting across Japan?"

"Megumi-dono I"

"And after I _specifically_ asked him to take it easy on you Of all the nerve Does that man ever use his head?"

"Megumi-dono it's just that"

It took the lady doctor an extra ounce of effort to pull herself away from her own train of thought. "Yes Ken-san, what is it?"

Suddenly, Kenshin found himself in a very perilous position.

"Oro"

Megumi's frustration and anger were all focused on one thing, and the former rurouni wasn't sure if he wanted to re-channel her energies.

_Now that I have her attention, I can't get out of this. I'm going to have to tell her everything that happened last night Megumi-dono isn't going to be happy with meespecially since she came to me yesterday and asked me to take it easy on Sano She really was looking out for both of us but in the end things got out of our hands. Will Megumi-dono understand that?_

Taking a deep breath, Himura Kenshin gathered his courage and met Megumi's gaze. "Megumi-dono There's something I need to tell you, that there is."

_And you're not going to like it, that you are not._

~//~

"Chikusho he's still unconscious." Yahiko stepped out of the maximum-security cell and closed the heavy iron door behind him. A long sigh escaped his lips and he slumped against the cold brick wall. "When is Megumi going to get here? I've done all I can but there's nothing I can do to fix up some of his injuries, ya know?" The young swordsman tugged at the collar of his police uniform in frustration. "Dammit, what was he thinking last night? And damn the cops for refusing to allow a doctor to look at his wounds! I don't care _if _Sano beat up some of their officers! It's still wrong!"

"Keep it down" Yahiko's companion glanced down the long lonely corridor, indicating that there was always the possibility of being overheard.

Yahiko kicked his heel against the uncaring wall as he listened to the equally uncaring man sitting beside him. "Kuso Aoshi! Nobody is going to hear us! Chou said this part of the police station is run by the Keishichou"

"That doesn't make a difference"

"Argh! Why am I even bothering to talk to you! You don't really care about Kenshin or Sanosuke!" The young swordsman let his comment hang in the air for a long moment before he continued. Aoshi didn't bother arguing the point, which only angered Yahiko further. "Did you not see what happened last night? The two of them didn't bother to hold back on each other and now Sano's beat to hell and who knows how Kenshin is he disappeared last night in all the chaos while we were busy arresting people. And not knowing what's going on is driving me insane! Where's Tokio, where's Chou, where's Megumi?!" Yahiko grabbed at his hair, demonstrating how far over the edge he really was.

"You _need_ to calm down." The former okashira of the Oniwabanshu knew how to be commanding without raising the tone of his voice.

Yahiko ran a hand back through his spiky hair to straighten it out and slowly slid down the wall to take a seat on the floor. "Listen Aoshi I'm sure you've seen a lot of terrible things in your life but in all your days, have you ever seen a battle like that between two men who are supposed to be best friends? Forget the fact that they were trying to make things look realistic because I'm fairly certain that it past over the threshold of a pretend fight" Yahiko recalled the battle that was still vivid in his mind's eye. "They were fighting for real they didn't hold back and I just don't understand."

"Not holding back?" If Aoshi were the kind of man to smile wryly, he would have at that moment. "Don't be foolish."

When Aoshi didn't bother to explain himself, Yahiko glared up at him. "What's that supposed to mean, exactly?"

"The Futae no Kiwami is a lethal punch. Any one of Sagara's blows that connected would have finished Himura if he _hadn't_ been holding back. While it is true that they were putting everything they had into the fight it is also true that they were still holding back their full strength The strength that would have made both of them deadly."

"Chikusho! You know that Kenshin and Sano wouldn't kill each other!"

"Precisely and that's why you're a fool if you think they weren't holding back in their battle."

Yahiko spent a few quiet minutes stewing over Aoshi's words.

_What he says it the truth but Mr. Icicle doesn't really understand what I'm trying to say. Why do I bother with this guy?_

Sighing again, Yahiko pulled up his legs and rested his arms on his knees. A slight chill from the wall crept through his police uniform causing him to shiver. It was then that the young swordsman realized how long he'd been awake. The events of the twenty-four hour period had left him without an opportunity to sleep. Leaning forward, he rested his forehead on his arms, curling up as comfortably as he could in a sitting position.

"Have you memorized your new profile yet?"

Aoshi's words snapped Yahiko back to his former alertness.

_Chikusho he won't even let me take a quick nap it's not like Sanosuke's going to try and escape or anything._

"No I haven't Are we supposed to have them memorized?" The young swordsman didn't bother hiding his irritation.

"You never know what information may become relevant at a moments notice. I suggest you spend your free time looking over it."

Yahiko searched his pockets and then remembered handing everything back to Chou so that he wouldn't accidentally misplace the secret information. Before he had a chance to tell Aoshi, the former okashira picked up his double kodachi sheath and unscrewed the hilt of one of his weapons. He extracted a rolled piece of paper from a hidden compartment and handed it to Yahiko.

"I took the liberty of borrowing your profile as well as my own. I've memorized them both and I suggest you do the same."

Yahiko's eyes widened, but before he could complain he realized that it was a completely logical thing for him to do.

_Of course I'll have to know about Aoshi's identity we're supposed to be partners after all. Che, why didn't anyone tell me being a secret agent would be so much work?_

The young swordsman barely got a chance to look at both of the profiles before the door at the end of the long hallway opened. Chou's bright red outfit and tall blonde hair were the first things that Yahiko noticed. Tokio was close behind him and following behind them both was the other person that the young swordsman was anxious to see.

"Megumi!" Yahiko jumped to his feet. "I'm glad you're here!"

Chou fixed his one open eye on the young swordsman and Yahiko had the sinking suspicion that he'd done something wrong.

"_Takani-sensei_ is here to see the prisoner." Chou's voice carried an edge as sharp as the swords he loved to collect.

As the distance between the two small groups vanished, Tokio locked her gaze with Aoshi's. "Did anything happen while the two of you were on guard?"

Aoshi stood up from his chair and saluted her smartly. "No, ma'am." Yahiko found himself following suit, though he was fully aware that his movements weren't as fluid as the older man's. He briefly wondered why Aoshi seemed so comfortable with his fake identity.

"Two Akabeko waitresses have delivered some O-bento." Tokio relayed the information emotionlessly but Yahiko knew what the real message was.

_Misao and Tsubame are here as well I'll get to see her one more time before we head off to Hokkaido. Just like Tokio promised us._

Tokio spotted the young swordsman's grin and graced him with a warm look that confirmed his suspicions. "You two are dismissed for a brief lunch break."

Aoshi saluted again and then started heading down the hall. Yahiko bowed his head slightly to thank Tokio and then he approached the lady doctor. "I did what I could for him _Takani-sensei_." The woman seemed to be subdued, and Yahiko figured that she'd already been informed of the ex-gangster's condition.   
  
"Thank you." Megumi didn't even look at him as she headed toward the prison cell with her medicine chest clutched tightly in her hands. Yahiko shrugged it off and hurried after Aoshi. Even if Megumi was angry or depressed, he knew that she'd still be able to help Sano out.

~//~

From what Kenshin had described, Megumi had a good idea what to expect when Chou opened up the metal door. But even so, she was still shocked by the smell of blood in the cool air of the small dark room. Lying on his back, the unconscious form of the ex-gangster seemed ghastly pale in the dim illumination coming from the hall. His skin was almost the color of his white gi and pants. As a glaring contrast, Megumi noticed the bright splotches of blood that adorned his shirt, hands, and face.

_Oh Kami-sama Sanosuke_

Tokio stood behind the lady doctor, and she immediately sensed the woman's apprehension and indecision. "Are you alright, Takani-sensei?"

Megumi was spurred into action by the other woman's words and quickly began her inspection of her newest patient. She put her fears aside so that she could fully focus on the task at hand. Tokio came to her side and watched with interest as the lady doctor checked the ex-gangster's vital signs.

After a few moments, Megumi pursed her lips.

_This room is cold and he's lying here on a hard wooden board that would barely pass for a bench much less a hospital bed. They've manacled his hands together without bothering to treat the injuries he's sustained on both of them. His right hand is severely broken and his wrist has swollen up inside the restraint. They're lucky his circulation wasn't cut off or I'd be amputating right now_

Frustration built inside the lady doctor as she stared down at the one man she had finally decided to love unconditionally. Any angry thoughts she might have directed at him disappeared as she realized how helpless he looked, unconscious and locked up in a place that he didn't belong.

_His wounds weren't cleaned or treated and the cuts on his left hand and eyebrow need stitches. He's got a fever his pulse is weakit looks like he's damaged half his ribcage probably broken a few ribs He's injured his jaw his neckand I won't know what else until I can get him out of his shirt but then he's going to freeze._

She glanced up at the female Keishichou agent, giving her a serious look.

_If this is anyone's fault it's hersShe's the one who forced this upon Sanosuke and she's the one who's going to have to help me rectify the situation. I know one thing that will get her attention if she's anything like her husband._

"If you want him to be any use to you later You must do exactly what I tell you."

Megumi could tell that Tokio didn't like the thought of being told what to do, but after only a brief pause the other woman nodded her head in agreement.

_At least she'll listen to reason_

~//~

"You ready Tsubame-chan?" Misao sat on the edge of Chou's desk right next to two piping-hot boxed lunches.

The young waitress nodded timidly. "Do you really think I should?"

"Hey, don't back out on me now! I thought we were going to do this together?" The weasel girl hopped off the desk and put her hands on her hips.

"H Hai."

Tsubame still seemed unsure of herself so Misao walked over to her and threw her arm around her shoulders. "You want him to think about you while he's gone right? Yahiko will like it trust me"

The door to Chou's office opened causing the two women to jump in surprise.

"What am I going to like?" Yahiko walked in and fixed Tsubame with an inquisitive look.

The young waitress blushed and remained silent leaving Misao to respond. "You're O-bento! Tsubame made it just for you!"

"Oh" The young swordsman could tell that there was something the okashira was leaving out. He'd always been able to tell when she was lying or tying to be sneaky about something, but when he fixed her with a knowing stare she only picked up one of the boxed lunches and held it out for him with a huge smile plastered to her face. Her cheerful mood was uplifting so Yahiko decided to let it go for the time being.

"Thank you for bringing us lunch." Aoshi stated as he took one of the steaming meals and immediately started eating it. Yahiko grabbed his own and started in on it, happy to have warm food in his empty stomach.

The two women watched in silence while Aoshi and Yahiko finished their meals. The men were too tired and hungry to bother making polite conversation, but when they were finished they both turned to appraise their visitors.

"Do you two have any news on Kenshin?" Yahiko asked hopefully.

The weasel girl's smile managed to stay in place. "Yup. He came back last night and Megumi-san says he's going to be fine. So you two don't need to worry about him."

"Phew that takes a load off my mind So um" Yahiko glanced toward Tsubame and scratched the back of his head. "I guess we gotta say goodbye to you two for a while."

"Not like that you aren't!" Misao grabbed Aoshi by the wrist and pulled him to his feet. "Chou said we could use his interrogation rooms to talk in private. Tsubame, you and Yahiko can talk in the one on the left Aoshi and I will talk in the one on the right." The young swordsman wasn't sure what he was getting into but he decided he didn't like the way Misao gave Tsubame a thumbs up sign before she hauled Aoshi off into one of the rooms.

~//~

"Tsubame, what are you and the weasel girl up to?" Yahiko closed the door behind him and folded his arms in front of his chest. "This really isn't the time to be playing games."

"It's it's not a game, Yahiko-kun" Tsubame absently brushed at the apron of her waitress outfit. "It's just that we wanted to say goodbye to you two in a special way"

Yahiko's eyes widened. "Wha What do you mean by that?" His heart started racing as the attractive young waitress took a step toward him, smiling shyly.

"I hope everything will be alright up in Hokkaido You'll take care of yourself, won't you?" Tsubame's eyes pleaded with him. Yahiko barely managed to nod as the young woman took another step toward him. "I'd be really sad if something happened to you"

"I I'll be fine, Tsubame."

_Why is she looking at me like that?_

Tsubame took another step and Yahiko found himself staring directly into her face. Not only was she too close for him to comfortably focus on anything else but also he felt himself oddly mesmerized by her sparkling eyes and the gentle curve of her lips.

_What the hell? Why am I looking at her lips??_

It was a mere fraction of a second later that he realized why he'd been staring at that particular part of her face. She drew in close to him, timid and unsure of what she was doing. Yahiko held his breath and remained rigid and unmoving, unable and unwilling to escape the young woman's spell. Warm lips, more tender than anything he could have imagined gently brushed against his cheek and Yahiko's eyes widened as realization struck.

_She KISSED me! Tsubame kissed me!_

Tsubame stood back and nervously clasped her hands together in front of her apron, waiting for his response. She was blushing madly, and Yahiko was dimly aware of a warm sensation creeping up his own neck. Slowly, he raised a hand to his face and felt the spot where the historic event had taken place.

_My first kissshe only kissed me on the cheek, but I don't think I've ever felt anything like that before. It was like lightning when she made contact. My body is tingling! Is there something wrong with me??_

He stared at the young, beautiful, woman wondering if she had the answer to his question. Tsubame bit her bottom lip. "Did did you like it? At all?"

_She thinks I didn't like it! What am I doing? I need to tell her right now how much I enjoyed it, but I don't know what to say!_

"Tsu Tsubame" He stammered, feeling like an idiot. "That was great And thanks for caring about me so much. You're the best girlfriend in the whole world."

Her face brightened like the noonday sun and she threw her arms around his neck. And for once, Yahiko and Tsubame hugged each other without worrying about what anyone else would say.

~//~

"Misao what is all this about?" Aoshi watched her calmly as she closed the door behind the two of them.

"How long have we known each other, Aoshi?"

The serious question from the generally unserious person almost caught him off guard. "Since you were born of course why?"

"We've been separated a lot during that time And now you're going away again. But I don't really mind Aoshi-sama because I know that you'll be coming back. I'm not worried at all. And I know I won't have to go chasing after you again cause you'll come back on your own."

It wasn't a question, but for some reason, the former okashira felt the need to reply. "Of course Misao"

"You've changed Aoshi." Misao fixed him with a strange look and the powerful ninja suddenly felt unsure of himself. Was change a good thing? "You've had a lot of time to think about things to work out your feelings It's been five years since you came back to us to me And I've been waiting all this time"

"Waiting?"

Misao heard a note of uncertainty from the man known for his composure. "You know what I'm going to say to you as a spy you know how to gather your information." The female ninja paused and searched his face. He watched her in disbelief as she uttered the words he never thought he'd hear from anyone. "I love you, Aoshi. I always have, and I always will"

His mouth opened to speak but instead it only managed to hang, partially open.

"And if you think I'm talking about the same childish love I've had for you all my life think again." With skills from years of martial arts training, Misao grabbed the collar of his police uniform and pulled him off balance enough so that his face met hers. And then, it wasn't just their faces that met. The young woman who had always worshipped him pressed her moist lips against his and he found himself powerless. Lips that he'd watched with interest while she smiled and talked were suddenly making contact with his own lips that rarely even smiled. To say that Shinomori Aoshi was surprised would fall far short of the truth. He stood there, leaning forward and not daring to move as she kissed him.

After a breathless moment, Misao finally pulled away. He hadn't kissed her back, but he hadn't resisted her either. It was a start, and more than the young woman would have asked for in a hundred years. "You don't have to say anything Aoshi. Not yet I'm giving you a little longer to figure out how you feel." She jumped back, gave him her biggest grin and flashed him a victory sign with two of her fingers. "Kick some bad guy ass up in Hokkaido! I'll be waiting for you!" And without another word, she darted out the door to leave Aoshi standing in the room, staring blankly at the spot where she'd been standing half a heartbeat earlier.

~//~

_A little pain's not so bad really It lets me know that I'm alive, at the very least_

The minute the thought popped into his head, he knew he'd returned to consciousness. He reluctantly brushed away some of the remaining cobwebs in his brain and slowly opened his eyes. He made a valiant effort to coalesce the double and triple image that assaulted his vision. It was strange, but even though he swore he'd opened both his eyes, only one of them seemed to be working. The thought might have scared a normal man, but he wasn't one of them.

_At any rate, I can still see Now if only I could figure out what I'm looking at._

A few unacknowledged moments passed before he finally realized that he was staring at a plain wooden ceiling.

_Ahhh a ceiling great now where am I exactly?_

He thought briefly about getting up and getting himself away from wherever he was. That was his general rule of thumb for regaining consciousness in a strange place. Chances were good that you'd either lost consciousness in that place, which made it potentially dangerous, or the people who'd knocked you senseless had taken you there, which was also an equally bad thing.

_Yup, it's definitely time to go._

Before he could convince his strangely reluctant body to listen, he sensed a presence beside him. He didn't need to see the person to know who it was. He found himself comforted just by having her near. Suddenly, getting up and leaving didn't seem all that necessary.

He discovered, to his great joy, that if he looked down and to his left he could see her. He remained absolutely still as he watched her work in the room illuminated only by a few scattered lanterns. Her face was drawn and her lips squeezed tightly against each other, but she was still beautiful. So beautiful, in fact, that he felt momentarily guilty for having the honor of waking up with her by his side. Entrenched in her work, she gently cleansed the palm of his left hand with a liquid that caused a sharp twinge of pain to race up his arm. He must have flinched because her focus changed from her task to his face.

"Sanosuke?" Concern was etched on her features.

"Mornin." At least, that's what he'd meant to say. For some reason his jaw wasn't responding with it's normal efficiency.

She seemed to notice his flash of confusion and quickly placed her hand on his shoulder, reassuring him by her touch. "Don't talk Sano and lie still everything will be alright"

_Everything will be alright?_

A sudden flash of memory hit him like a zanbatou. In rapid succession, images from his midnight battle with his best friend flashed in front of his eyes. Reacting without thinking, he tried to sit up in alarm. Her gentle hand turned forceful as she kept him pinned. Unfortunately, she couldn't keep the pain from his undue movements from slamming into him. In a bright flash of agony, he relived every blow from his friend's sakabatou. The intense assault overcame his senses and for a moment, he knew blackness.

"Sanosuke? Sanosuke!"

Someone groaned in pain, and it wasn't until a moment later that his brain processed the information and let him know that he'd been the one to make the noise.

"Chikusho" He pried his eyes open and found three Megumi's hovering over him.

"When I said, _lie still_, I really meant, _don't move_. Would that have been easier to understand?"

_Is sheteasing me?_

"Megumi?" His voice sounded unnaturally hoarse in his own ears and once again his jaw refused to open without major complaints.

She placed a single finger to his lips, touching them lightly. "Don't try to speak your jaw and throat have sustained injury."

He opened his mouth to protest, but even that movement brought a fresh wave of pain.

"You need to rest right now, Sagara Sanosuke. Your fight with Ken-san would have killed a normal man" She paused and gave him a terribly serious look. "I'm not saying that to inflate your ego I'm saying that because it is the truth, plain and simple. The injuries to your head and neck alone should have been enough to finish anyone. As it is, I'm afraid you're going to be having a lot of headaches for the next couple of weeks and you may experience vision problems."

As she mentioned his eyesight, Sanosuke began to reach his hand up to feel his face.

_Che, is there something covering my eye, or is it swollen shut? Or is it not working??_

He didn't get to lift his hand six inches before she clasped his wrist gently and lowered his hand back to its original position. "Don't move Sano, especially not your hands If you're worried about your vision You had a deep cut on your eyebrow and the left side of your face is bruised. You eye is swollen shut, and I had to wrap it to cover the stitches on your eyebrow."

He nodded imperceptibly. "What else?"

Megumi pursed her lips again as he spoke but refrained from chiding him. "You've broken three ribs and severely bruised a few more. You're lucky you wear a tight wrapping around your waist already That's about all I could do for the injury anyway. You'll need to take it easy for a while so they have a chance to heal" He nodded again, too tired to argue with her. "You've got a variety of bruises and scrapes, but your worst injuries are your hands." She paused a moment and picked up a fresh roll of bandages. "I just finished stitching up your left hand that's probably what woke you up." She carefully lifted his hand and began wrapping the bandages around his palm. "You've broken your right hand again worse than before." She avoided eye contact as she continued working. "If you're not careful this time there won't be anything I can do to fix it."

He settled back as he watched her work, feeling strangely content. "You can fix anything"

Her eyes flashed angrily for a split second but when she turned and met his gaze, her look softened. "Listen Sanosuke I appreciate your confidence in me but you don't seem to understand the current state of your hand. It was already broken before your fight last night. And then it seems you forgot yourself and used that crazy attack of yours. You've broken your fingers and the bones in the back of your hand were sticking out when I arrived. The skin on your hand is heavily scarred and it's not going to heal as quickly as it used to." As she spoke, Sano slowly lifted his heavily bandaged right hand to take a look at it. Megumi was watching his face so intently that she either didn't notice or didn't care what he was doing. "It's the same thing with the bones And on top of that hands are made up of complicated muscles and ligaments and yours have been through so much that it is highly likely that you've already permanently damaged them."

Sanosuke dropped his hand back to his side and gave her his full attention. She continued, explaining his injuries in detail, but the whole time he felt a smile forming.

_She's so amazing... She's smart, beautiful, wonderful..._

"You need to listen to me this time." She continued, sensing that his attention was slipping from the topic. "If you don't let your hand rest, it's finished" Unable to meet his intense gaze any longer, she turned back to her work. "When you come back from Hokkaido I'd rather have you in one piece"

Her quiet comment elicited a single bark of laughter from her patient. He winced slightly as his ribs protested the movement, but a wide grin spread itself across lips that were swollen and split. "Relax Fox."

"Relax?" She glared at him, thinking about all the work she'd done to try and fix him up. She thought about the seriousness of his injuries and about how terrified she'd been to walk into the prison cell and find him bleeding and unconscious. "Why exactly should I relax!?"

With each word he spoke, he felt his jaw limbering up. "Cause this is nothing. I've lived through much worse. And nothing is going to happen to me in Hokkaido to keep me from coming back in one piece."

Megumi had to put a tight rein on her emotions to keep herself from yelling at him. "Sanosuke I can see you don't understand the situation as much as I do For once do you think you can just listen to me?"

"Hey I always listen to you."

Megumi's eyes widened and then narrowed in frustration. "If that were _true_ then none of _this_ would have happened." She vaguely indicated his multiple injuries. "I told you to yesterday to be careful in your fight with Ken-san but did you listen? No!"

"Hey hey you didn't say anything about taking care of myself You just told me to take it easy on Kenshin" Sanosuke felt a strange sensation creeping up the back of his neck as he watched the lady doctor's reaction to his words. "Wait is Kenshin alright?" He went to sit up again but she managed to stop him before he made it too far. He was almost thankful as he felt his head sink back against the comfortable pillow that cushioned it. "Kenshin is he?"

"He's fine Sanosuke but like you, he'll need his rest."

Tension that he hadn't been aware of melted out of his body. "Oh good you had me scared there for a minute"

"It's not quite that simple" She hesitated a moment before continuing. "We found him last night passed out in the front yard."

"Chikusho" His jaw tightened causing a spasm of pain that he completely ignored.

"Ken-san's Hiten Mitsurugi techniques were too much of a strain on his body. He's pulled quite a few muscles and I believe he's fractured both his feet probably since so much of his style involves jumping and quick movement"

"Shit" Sano clenched his left hand and felt each one of his fresh stitches pulling against his palm. "Megumi I I"

_I what? I didn't think? I didn't know? I didn't listen to you? Why am I such an idiot?_

The lady doctor laid her hand over his and gently coerced him to open it before causing himself more injury. "It's alright Sanosuke I won't pretend to understand what happened between you and Ken-san last night but you're both going to recover so I really can't complain. Or at least if you listen to me you're going to recover."

Sanosuke sighed and stared up at the ceiling, suddenly feeling very foolish.

_I don't really care what happens to me but hell if I wanted that to happen to Kenshin. I hope he'll be all right. But I guess he'll have Jou-chan and Megumi around to take care of him Speaking of Megumi this is the last time I'm going to get to see her for a while isn't it?_

"Sano?"

He fixed his one eyed gaze on the lady doctor. "Yeah Fox?"

"Ken-san told me details about your fight so I could be prepared to treat you today I've treated your hands, your ribs, your face, your neck, and your head is there any other injuries I should take a look at?"

He paused a long moment and allowed his brain to receive messages from all parts of his body. He realized that his previously dislocated shoulder was left untreated. "Uh my shoulder kinda hurts I dislocated it last night."

Megumi blinked. "Oh. Ken-san must have forgotten that detail. Well let's see I'm going to have to take a look at it."

Without waiting for her consent, Sano rolled over on his side, threw his legs over the bed and used his elbow to prop himself up. Megumi gasped at his sudden movement but spared him the complaints that burst into her mind. Instead, she helped him sit up fully and kept her hand on his chest to keep him from falling off the bed. After the momentary look of dizziness passed from his face, he replaced it with one of his stupid grins.

_Does he expect me to be proud of him for acting like an idiot? So what if no other man in Tokyo would even be conscious after receiving his injuries_

She sighed and shook her head. "You're impossible"

"Don't you mean _impressive_?"

"The only thing that's impressive about you is your stupidity Now we need to take off your shirt."

"My my aren't _we_ in a hurry."

"Sano"

"You're just dying to get me out of my shirt again, aren't you?" He leaned his face towards hers, still smiling like an idiot.

_What's gotten into him?_

"Sano! This is serious. And we don't have time to play around"

He noticed the faint blush creeping up on her face and felt satisfied that he could still have that effect on her. "Who said anything about playing around?" He lowered his voice and softened it, doing his best to sound enticing. He'd already figured out how much she liked it when he talked that way.

She stared at him wide-eyed as he cradled the back of her head in his bandaged left hand and brought their lips together, kissing her hungrily. For a moment she seemed hesitant, but the urgency she sensed from him fueled her own feelings. She leaned forward into the kiss, pushing him back against the cold, stone walls of the prison and climbing up onto the bed beside him, partially straddling one of his legs. He was enjoying every moment and every sensation and found himself drowning in her lips and her closeness. One thing stood in the way of complete contact and his clumsy bandaged hands found the folds of her medical smock. As he worked to free her from her confines, her own hands played across his body.

They were gentle and soothing, warm to the touch and exciting. He loved how she touched him... How she played with the muscles of his back and his chest. Her hands slid down across his rib cage and a sudden jolt of pain brought everything crashing to a halt. Their lips broke apart as his entire body flinched from the pain. He bumped the back of his head against the wall causing himself more pain.

"Chikusho" He groaned and then opened his eye when he realized that he'd squeezed it shut. Megumi's face was directly in front of his, and she was smiling mischievously.

"As much as I'd love to stay right here with you we really do need to take a look at your other injuries."

"Dammit Fox, you did that on purpose?" He gingerly probed his ribcage, where the vixen had attacked him. "That's not funny"

"And neither are untreated injuries. Now help me get your shirt off so I can get a look at that shoulder of yours."

_I can't win_

He sighed and assisted to the best of his ability as she slid his gi off one shoulder and then the other. Her hands probed his shoulder gently, but the contact didn't excite him. Once again her hands were the hands of an experienced doctor.

"Don't look so depressed Sano You should have realized that I'm going to have to punish you for not following my orders. If you weren't injured right now, you and I could spend our time together differently."

The subtle hint left Sanosuke mentally cursing himself.

_Now why didn't I think about this before? And I can't forget that this is the last time that we're going to get to see each other before I leave for Hokkaido I need to tell her how I feel and make her understand I know she's attracted to me and all but I want more from her. But does she understand that this isn't just about lust? And right now does she think I'm anything other than a complete idiot for not listening to her?_

"Hey Megumi"

She stopped wrapping his shoulder and met his gaze. "What is it?"

"I know you're kinda mad at me for not listing to you and getting all beat up in the process and beating up Kenshin and ruining our last visit before I leave for Hokkaido and even for agreeing to go to Hokkaido in the first place..." She didn't bother to argue the point or interrupt him so he continued. "And" He trailed off, trying vainly to come up with a way to explain himself and his feelings. A sudden thought popped into his head, causing him to smile at the memory. "Do you want to hear a story?"

She blinked in confusion. ""I know you're mad at me so do you want to hear a story!?" You've suffered a worse head injury than I thought." The lady doctor returned to her work, shaking her head in wonder.

Sanosuke scowled at her and caught her hand with his left. "Can you just listen?"

"Fine Sano but remember, we don't have all day." She didn't bother to mention that she was curious to see what kind of story he could possibly tell her to justify everything that had happened.

"Ok well After leaving Japan the first place I found myself in was America."

"This sounds like a long story Sanosuke" She picked up a fresh roll of bandages.

"Don't interrupt" He gave her a serious look and then continued. "The place is a lot different than Japan and I soon discovered that if I wanted to travel across it, which I did, I'd need to find myself some means of transportation besides my own two legs." Megumi rolled her eyes and finished wrapping Sano's injured shoulder while he spoke. "I asked around, and everyone told me that the best way for a lone man to travel through the deserts and plains separating me from the East Coast was to go by train And I Uh I decided that I'd rather have some freedom while I traveled" Megumi hid her smile as she thought about the ex-gangster's real reason for avoiding the train. His unnatural fear of the large moving vehicles had always been one of the Kenshin-gumi's favorite jokes. Fortunately, Sano didn't notice her amusement. "I decided instead, to buy myself a horse."

"A horse, Sanosuke?" Megumi was slightly surprised by the turn in his story. She tried to imagine him riding a horse through some foreign country.

"Yes A horse. Now where was I oh yes. Anyway, so I went to go buy myself a horse but apparently somebody thought it would be funny to send me to the worst horse dealer in California" The ex-gangster broke off for a brief moment muttered under his breath something that Megumi thankfully didn't understand. She got the basic emotion though, Sano was still pissed at whoever had tricked him. "So anyway, I get there and the guy is almost completely sold out and at the time I knew nothing about buying a decent animal So I let this guy rip me off by selling me a completely untrained horse."

"That's terrible Sanosuke but what's your point?"

"I'm getting to it!"

Megumi grinned and draped the man's white gi over his shoulders to keep him as warm as possible in the cell. He didn't seem to notice as his memories drifted up from wherever he'd been keeping them.

"The horse was absolutely terrible! In all my days, I've never seen an animal like him. I picked him because he seemed spirited and I thought a lively horse was a good one. What an idiot I was I couldn't get him to do a damn thing!" He smiled and turned to Megumi. "If I wanted to go left, he wanted to go right If I wanted him to gallop, he wanted to stop Never in the all the months that the horse and I traveled together did it ever drop its attitude!" Sanosuke laughed once and grinned. A sudden wistful look came across his face and he stared off toward the door of the cell. "But Kami-sama In all my years of traveling, I never found a horse I loved as much as that one It never did a thing I wanted it do to but I still loved it"

Megumi found herself surprised by the emotion that he was expressing about an animal, but when he turned back to face her, she understood what he was getting at with his story.

"Megumi I know I don't listen to you half as much as I should but do you think" He faltered a moment, glancing down at his bandaged hands. "Do you think you can love me anyway?"

"Oh Sano" She folded her arms around him and took special care not to injure him when she pulled him close. "I meant to tell you before how I felt but everything's been getting in our way I'm not sure how I felt about you before you left Japan but I know now that I love you."

Sanosuke's eyes widened and he wrapped his arms around her tightly. "Megumi really?" His voice broke, but he didn't care.

"Of course Sanosuke" She pulled away from him and gently brushed his wild bangs out of his eye. "Only I think I can succeed where you failed with your horse. I'm going to tame you, Sagara Sanosuke if it's the last thing I do." She smiled at him radiantly and irresistibly.

"And what if you can't?" He smirked, drawing her closer to him. "Many have tried all of them failed."

"I'll keep you anyway."

-----------------------

Sorry about the long wait people. I hardly wrote at all over Christmas break because evil video games, family, and friends got in the way. I hope you all can forgive me? And I hope this doesn't stop people from **reviewing**!

Special thanks to: eri, Draconicalpriest, Firuze Khanume, Karina Kineshi, MegumiFuu, Wintermute, SnuggleBunni, Mkasshoku., Carolyn, Sagara Sanosuke, Nayru Ikari, Seiyo, Jason M. Lee, omni82, chibi tomoe, Chibimora, Lara-chan, Daniel Do Amaral Rodrigues, Em, and laijenn for reading and taking the time to review my two previous chapters! I put a lot of work into them and I'm so glad that you let me know that my work was worth the effort! Chapter 17 was just especially for you guys!

Coming Next: It's a big secret! *sticks out tongue* But wait... is that cigarette smoke I smell? Could it possibly be... the wolf of Mibu?? You won't wanna miss it!

Oh yeah, as a side note, I just wrote a story called "Oceans In Between" which I've affectionately started calling "The Run to You OVA's". It's a look in Sano's mind as he leaves Japan. Eventually I'll start adding chapters all about his adventures while he traveled the world. But this isn't just some new fun for me! Oh no! I'd like to challenge any of you authors/readers/fans out there to write some stories about Sano's world travels! If enough people are interested, I'll probably have a contest with cool prizes! Email me or leave a review here or for "Oceans in Between" if you're interested!   



	19. Chapter 18: Appearance of the Wolf

Author: Arashi (marenski@hotmail.com)

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Beta Reader: Karina Kineshi

Disclaimer: I do own Rurouni Kenshin and I am making money off this story! (nobody reads these things, right?)

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**Chapter 18: Appearance of the Wolf**

Chou yawned and stretched casually. His rickety chair complained as he tilted it back, balancing it precariously on two legs. After he finished, he placed his hands behind his head and rested against the wall, closing his eyes as though he were about to take a nap. Tokio watched him with quiet amusement the entire time.

_Chou never ceases to amaze me. He's never going to pick up the professional qualities most agents have naturally. And yet, that doesn't stop him from doing his job._

After a moment, the blonde man opened one of his eyes and stared down the long hallway, his anxiousness showing as he pulled out a pocket watch and checked the time. "Che they better get back here. We ain't got all day. And if I have to sit here any longer I'm gonna die from boredom!"

"You've been an agent for five years Chou. If you haven't died from boredom yet, I don't think it's going to kill you in the near future. And besides, all you have to look forward to is a long boring trip north."

Tokio's quiet humor elicited a broad grin from the blonde man. "I know, I know." He leaned forward, bringing the chair back to its proper position with a wooden clack. "Ya know Tokio I wish you and Saitoh would let me help you out in Hokkaido. I don't know why you're making me stay in northern Honshu."

"Yes, you do. How many times have we gone over it? We need you to keep an eye out for anything suspicious on the main island."

"Yeah it's just that work's not fun without you or Saitoh around."

The delicate curve of Tokio's eyebrow arched wryly. "I'll make sure I _don't_ relay that message to my husband. You know you're not supposed to have fun on the job."

Chou laughed twice and grinned at the woman standing beside him. "Yeah I know the only one who gets to have fun on the job is Saitoh."

Tokio shook her head in disagreement but before she was given the chance to reply, the door at the end of the hallway opened and admitted two men dressed in the uniform of elite sword police.

Chou jumped off the chair and stood, folding his arms impatiently in front of his chest. "Took you two long enough."

Neither Yahiko nor Aoshi deigned to reply to his comment. Not responding was understandable but there was something more to their silence. Noticing a faint blush on the young swordsman's face, Tokio easily decided that Yahiko was embarrassed about something that had happened. A quick glance at Aoshi revealed a man completely lost in his own thoughts. Tokio wasn't sure if it was possible, but it seemed that the tall man was even more withdrawn than usual.

The female Keishichou agent sighed and shook her head so slightly that not even the trained ninja could have detected her movements.

_This is what I get for letting them say goodbye to their women. I should have known that the weasel girl would try something. It seems she and the waitress have left lasting imprints And now these two look particularly pathetic. _  
  
"How did everything go?" Tokio pretended to be clueless to the changes in her newest agents. An extensive part of her training involved hiding and controlling emotion, a fact she was continually grateful for.

"Uh" Yahiko scratched the back of his head furiously and glanced toward his silent companion looking for some backup. Aoshi continued to stare straight ahead, oblivious.

"At any rate, you've said your goodbyes, correct?"

The younger man managed to nod his head but after a brief moment of quiet scrutiny from the lady agent, he became distracted by an imaginary piece of lint on his uniform.

"I'll take that for a yes." Chou dropped his hands to his sides. "Now we just get ol' rooster-head movin' and we can get out of here."

Chou and Tokio both turned toward the cell door but stopped when Yahiko made a coherent comment. "Hold on!" They both paused and glanced back at him as he continued. "If _Takani_-sensei is in there with him and he's actually _awake_ you should give them a few more minutes and a proper warning before you barge in." The young man's usual spirit returned and he grinned ridiculously, seemingly unaware that his face was blushing more with each passing word. "Trust me on this one."

~//~

"Ya gonna miss me while I'm gone?" Sanosuke smiled up into Megumi's face. Getting him to rest was a difficult chore and when the lady doctor had finally convinced him to lie down, he had sprawled out haphazardly and pinned her in place by resting his head and part of his upper body on her lap. One of his legs dangled off the edge of the makeshift bed and the other was bent and propped up comfortably against the wall. Draped over his chest and arms, his white gi with the character for evil doubled nicely as a blanket.

"Maybe _eventually_." Megumi smirked as she played with his unruly hair. "But it will be nice to finally have some peace and quiet. It will be like a vacation living at the dojo with no work and no distractions. Ken-san and Kaoru said I could stay as long as I want."

Sanosuke scoffed. "You'll get bored and then you'll spend all your time thinking about me and moping around the place."

"Oh, I'm not so sure of that. There are plenty of things to do around the dojo and Tokyo. Especially with all us women together."

"You'll get bored"

A forceful knock on the cell door halted Megumi's comment before it had a chance to escape her lips. Sanosuke slowly sat up and his white gi slid down his chest, into his lap, revealing his heavily bandaged body. Megumi watched him carefully as he moved, but there was no strain on his face and his injuries did not impede his movement. She silently thanked his unnatural stamina and realized that her earlier fears for his health were _almost_ unnecessary.

_There's a lot you can say about Sagara Sanosuke but nobody can say that he isn't tough. Looks like my worrying has been for nothing. If he can be up and moving after a serious battle with Ken-san, there's no one he's going to run into in that prison that'll be able to stop him. Which means he'll be coming back to me safe and sound._

"Takani-sensei?" Tokio's voice sounded strangely distant through the solid metal of the door. "It's time. Are you finished?"

Megumi stood and took two quick steps toward the door. She glanced back at the man sitting on the edge of his makeshift bed, biting her bottom lip as she realized that she wasn't quite prepared to see him off. He smiled confidently for her, but the look only made her want to spend more time with him.

"Not yet." Megumi raised her voice so it would penetrate the barrier between her and the other woman. "Please give me just a few minutes to finish up."

"Alright, you have five minutes."

Megumi turned, and was startled to find Sanosuke standing a mere foot behind her.

"Looks like it's time for me to go." He stared at the cell door for a moment and then turned, locking his eye with hers. "I'm sorry about all this Megumi I really am."

"Don't be sorry" The lady doctor shook her head, trying to fight the sadness that was worming its way into her mind. "Things are out of our control. And don't apologize because I'm going to come up with some way for you to make this up to me after you return." She smiled slyly, latching onto their familiar bickering to keep her emotions in control. "I'm not letting you off with a simple apology, you got that?"

She leaned toward him menacingly and he raised both his bandaged hands, teasingly trying to calm her down. "Ok ok, I understand."

"And don't forget, Sagara Sanosuke about the promise you made me already."

"Hey, don't worry. I only forget promises I never intended to keep in the first place." Sano grinned like a rogue and shoved his hands into his pockets.

"Sano" She eyed him skeptically causing him to laugh and remove his hands from his pockets so he could put them to use.

He pulled her close, encircling her with his powerful arms. "Just kidding fox I never make promises that I don't intend to keep. And you know I meant it when I said when I return, I'm never going to leave you again."

"Never Sanosuke? No matter what?" She pressed her face into his chest, willing her body to merge with his to make their imminent separation impossible.

"No matter what hell, you won't be able to get rid of me even if you want to. You'd have to chase me away with a big stick but then I'd come back anyway." They both laughed once at the thought and then Sanosuke pulled his hand up to brush against her long flowing hair. "You're stuck with me fox"

"Well" She pulled away, smiling up into his ruggedly handsome albeit bruised and bandaged face. "I _guess_ that will work for me."

"Oh be quiet" He silenced her for a moment with a single kiss, grinning as they finally pulled apart. "Now there's just one more little thing it's a bit of a favor I guess but I don't think you'll mind."

"What's that, Sanosuke?" Megumi watched as he turned around and casually collected his white gi from the bed.

"Take this" He extended his hand, offering her the shirt. "I know you made it for me and all but it'll be something for you to keep and look at when you're thinking about me." Sanosuke forced a smile that hinted to the lady doctor that there was something he wasn't saying.

She took it from his hand and gathered it together, holding it close. "Alright Sanosuke but do you mind explaining the rest of your reason for wanting me to take this?"

"You're too clever, Fox" He paused a moment giving her a thoughtful look before deciding to continue. "Yeah, you're right I do have a bit more reasoning behind wanting you to take the shirt. Well, ya see I'm going to be heading to Hokkaido and all and I'm going to be carted around as a prisoner everywhere we go. And well"

"You don't want to ruin your reputation?"

He nodded slowly. "Something like that. I know that shirt has the character for evil sewn on the back But it's a symbol, ya know? It's a symbol that has come to mean more good than bad in the last year that I wore it before leaving Japan. But wearing it around while I'm being hauled around as a prisoner will make people think that it really is just what it appears to be" He watched as Megumi carefully folded the white gi. "People won't understand that the man who wears it is actually doing something good for the country. I feel like I'd be dishonoring my shirt by wearing it up to Hokkaido" He paused a moment and then scratched the back of his head. "Did that make any sense at all?"

"I think so"

"Well, anyway it doesn't matter if it makes sense. Could you just keep it for me until I return?"

"Of course And Sanosuke I've got something for you as well." Reaching inside the sleeves of her smock, the lady doctor retrieved a small medicine jar painted with delicate flowers.

Sano's eyes widened with recognition. "Hey isn't that?"

"Back when everyone left for Kyoto I sent a jar like this with Kaoru and Yahiko. It was a gift for Ken-san I suppose it was a token of my love." Megumi smiled wistfully and placed the round jar into the ex-gangsters bandaged hand, closing his fingers around it with her own. "But you know I had a feeling that a certain rooster-head who always got into trouble would need the contents more than Ken-san."

A pointed look from the lady doctor caused the 'certain rooster-head' to laugh softly. "You really thought about me when you sent it? I never knew that."

"Yes, I thought about you at least a little." She smirked, causing Sano to chuckle again. After a moment, the lady doctor gently traced her finger over the smooth lid of the medicine. "I knew when you disappeared from Tokyo that you'd find Ken-san and then I knew the two of you would get yourselves into a mess. This medicine is a family secret, you know It will stop wounds from bleeding and keep them from getting infected."

"I know" Sano grinned. "I saw first hand how effective it was at Shishio's. Things would have been a lot worse for me and Kenshin if you hadn't sent it."

"And now I'm giving you your very own jar. If I can't be there to take care of you, at least I can give you this along with my love." Stepping toward him, she sunk once again into his warm embrace. "Will you look at it and think of me while you're in Hokkaido, Sanosuke?"

"Every five minutes Megumi" Closing his eyes, Sano pulled the woman closer, engulfing her with his arms. "I won't be gone long, but even so It's going to feel like an eternity."

"I'll be waiting for you Sanosuke I'd wait an eternity as long as I know you'll be coming back in the end."

"It's strange Megumi But I've never felt like I had a place to return to All my life I've moved around without a care in the world. I've never been very attached to people or places But you make me feel different. When I'm with you I feel like I belong" Pulling back so he could soak up the sight of her beautiful face, Sanosuke lifted her chin with one bandaged finger. "And you know what else I've realized?" His smile grew in intensity, shifting the tone of his voice that had been almost serious before. His eyes started twinkling with some private amusement that he was about to share. "When I'm with you lately" He brushed the ever-present stray strand of hair out of her face. "I've been saying the stupidest things If anyone overhears us they're going to think I've gone soft."

Megumi couldn't help but laugh. "Your secret is safe with me, Sanosuke. Though perhaps we should let them hear? Maybe then they'd decide they don't want you for their crazy mission."

"That's my Fox. Always thinking!" Their light laughter ignored the confines of the small prison cell.

A second later, the moment was disturbed by a few solid knocks and the voice of the female Keishichou agent. "Time's up, we're coming inside." The locking mechanism clicked and the door squealed against its hinges. Pulling away from the ex-gangster, Megumi took a step toward the door and stood waiting for it to open completely. "Come along, Takani-sensei." Tokio urged the doctor to exit the cell, but the woman stood rooted to her position.

Glancing behind, Megumi allowed her eyes to take their fill of the man standing in the cell, the man who was about to sacrifice his time and safety for the sake of Japan. Sanosuke stood with his trademark grin plastered to his face and his hands buried in his pockets.

"Get goin' Fox. Don't worry about me."

_His self-confidence never ceases to amaze me but I guess that's just one more thing I find irresistible about him._

"You know" Megumi turned to face Tokio, unable to fight the upward tugging sensation at the edge of her lips. "Could you give us just one more minute?" Without waiting for a response, the lady doctor grabbed a hold of the door and pulled it shut, sealing her and the ex-gangster away from prying eyes as she rushed back into his arms to tell him 'goodbye' without saying a word.

In the hallway, Yahiko snickered as Tokio stared at the door that was only inches away from her face. She was fully aware that if she had been half a foot closer, the door would have nailed her.

"What the hell?" Chou blinked once, looking rather foolish. His dumbfounded expression disappeared to be replaced by one of sheer annoyance. "We ain't got time for this."

He reached out to grab the handle and push the door open, but Tokio caught a hold of his wrist. "Let them go Chou Another five minutes won't put us behind schedule"

"Yes, but" Aoshi overcame his bout of silence to make a thoughtful contribution to the conversation. If Misao had been present in the jail, she would have noticed the almost humorous expression on the former okashira's face. Only she could have fully understood the mindset of the generally serious man and the significance of his comment in regards to his own personal struggle. "If we really 'let them go' it's going to take more than five minutes."

~//~

Hugging the white gi to her chest as she exited the cell, Megumi brushed past Chou and Tokio as she headed into the hallway.

"Takani-sensei?"

Megumi paused as the other woman drew her attention. "Yes?"

"You have an item in your possession that I need returned." Tokio spoke carefully and the lady doctor couldn't tell if she was serious, angry, or simply indifferent.

"An item?" Glancing down, Megumi only saw one thing that didn't belong to her. "The gi?"

"Yes. It will be important to spread around word of Zanza's capture. Part of the mission hinges upon this. He needs to be recognizable."

Slowly and unwillingly, the doctor handed the article of clothing to the agent. She couldn't meet Sanosuke's gaze as the ex-gangster accepted the shirt and slid his arms into the sleeves. A rough scowl spread across his features and Megumi suddenly felt terrible.

_I'm sorry Sanosuke So much for keeping your good reputation but I'm sure nothing bad will come of you keeping the shirt except that I won't have it. If you're going to be gone for a long time, it would have been nice to have that shirt around to keep me company_

Megumi watched as Chou manacled the ex-gangster's wrists but the sight of Sano handcuffed and standing in a prison cell was almost too much for her. She caught his gaze, and smiled once more for him, wishing him the best of luck with all her heart. And then, the lady doctor turned and made her way down the long hallway without looking back.

_I'll be waiting Sanosuke_

~//~

Tokio was correct when she predicted the amount of excitement the train ride would provide the Keishichou agents. Long hours stretched by painfully slow as each member of the prison insertion team tried to find a way to pass the time. The government had secured them their own personal car, but this did not guarantee their privacy. Appearances had to be maintained, which caused Sanosuke to spend his first half hour complaining about his wooden hand cuffs.

"Nobody's going to come walking in here why the hell can't you take these damn things off?"

"Chikusho, Sanosuke! Can't you just curl up into a ball and shiver like you used to do whenever we rode a train!?" Yahiko threw down his profile sheets that he'd been attempting to study. As good as it was to see his friend up and about after his battle with Kenshin, Sanosuke's incessant pestering had finally annoyed the young swordsman. Chou and the ex-gangster had been arguing since arriving on the train and even Tokio had repeatedly asked the 'prisoner' to silence himself. Aoshi was the only one left that wasn't visibly irritated.

"I never curled up into a ball and shivered! You trying to say that I'm afraid of trains? Do I look like I'm shaking now? Huh??" Standing threateningly, the heavily bandaged man still managed to look imposing even with his hands cuffed together by a cumbersome wooden block.

Yahiko sighed and shook his head in disappointment. The ex-gangster was right; he really didn't appear to be afraid. The young swordsman found that fact strangely dissatisfying. "Just be quiet, ok? Somebody might hear us talking and figure out that you're not really a prisoner and" Yahiko paused and glanced up at the tall man expectantly. "How come you're _not_ afraid of trains anymore?"

Sanosuke spent a moment growling and shooting imaginary daggers out of his eyes. He finally cleared his throat and stood proudly. "I've _never_ been afraid of trains. But after spending five years traveling the world you can't help but become comfortable around them. And now I understand how they work and stuff So my _confusion_ about trains has been cleared up." The ex-gangster stressed the word as though it would somehow erase the memories that lingered in the young swordsman's head.

Yahiko rolled his eyes and collected his papers, focusing his attention on something other than the blatant liar standing before him.

"Now that _that's_ been cleared up" Sano held up his hands, drawing everyone's attention to the restraints on his wrists. "Is somebody going to take these off or am I going to have to do it _myself_?"

After half an hour of annoyance, Aoshi, Yahiko, Chou, and Tokio all decided the best way to deal with the situation was to ignore it. Frustrated, the ex-gangster marched into the small room that was doubling as a lock-up in case someone was to check in on them. Technically, he was supposed to be spending the entire ride in the small confinement. Tokio had conceded him some freedom, but she insisted that the manacles had to stay since it was harder to explain why a prisoner was unshackled.

After ten minutes of silence, Sanosuke disrupted the peaceful atmosphere again. Even in sleep the rest of the passengers were subjugated to his constant noise. His snoring distracted Yahiko from his studies and Tokio from her own reading. Aoshi and Chou seemed to be unfazed by the sound and after an hour, the blonde-haired man contributed to it. Meanwhile, Aoshi spent his time meditating.

~//~

By the sixteenth year of the Meiji, Western technology had spread through the country. A more thorough system of transportation was in place that allowed the Keishichou agents to make excellent time on their way to the northern part of Honshu, the main island of Japan. After a few brief stopovers and some time traveling by train and by carriage, the group finally reached their destination.

"This is it boys" Chou glanced out the window of the speeding carriage. "Oma, the most northern city of Honshu. It's my last stop but it's just the next step for you guys." Tokio detected a subtle hint of longing in the agent's voice.

"You're not coming up to Hokkaido with us?" Yahiko didn't really care, but he was curious. "Why come all this way just to turn back around?"

"He's not turning back around Yahiko-kun." Tokio gave the blonde-man a pointed look that indicated her words were for both him and the young swordsman. "Chou's next assignment is in Oma." The female agent refrained from voicing the fact that the Chou's mission was none of their business. Yahiko had picked up things fairly quickly and she knew he understood the importance of secrecy.

"Oh I see." Settling back into the cushioned seat, Yahiko released the curtain allowing it to drop back into its place, sealing away their view of the city. "Well I'm glad we're almost to Hokkaido. I want to take care of this problem as soon as possible so we can get back to Tokyo." A sudden grin burst onto the young swordsman's face as thoughts of Tsubame popped into his head.

_Maybe we can try that kissing thing some more_

"That's what I was just thinking"

Yahiko blanched as Sanosuke made his comment. It took the fifteen year old a moment to realize that the ex-gangster was referring to the thoughts he vocalized and not the ones that had been bouncing around in his head ever since his farewell visit from Tsubame. A nervous laugh from the youngest member of their team resulted in some curious looks from the other four people in the carriage.

"What's so funny?" Misinterpreting the situation, Sanosuke started glaring.

"Uh, nothing Sano" Yahiko unconsciously reached up and scratched the back of his head as he continued to laugh weakly.

_Nothing indeed._

"Hmph" Sanosuke would have folded his arms in front of his chest, but his wrists were locked together by his wooden restraints. Instead, he settled for scooting low in his seat and stretching his long legs across the separation between the two bench seats that faced each other. The chains of his new leg restraints clanked against each other reminding him of his predicament. Tokio insisted that he really look the part of a dangerous criminal for their trip across the Tsugara Strait. This fact disturbed the ex-gangster to no end as his mobility was severely infringed upon. In short, after a week of traveling as a prisoner Sanosuke was ready to practice his Futae no Kiwami on the annoying devices.

He flexed the fingers of his left hand and curled them into a fist, feeling the light pull of his stitches as he did so. The injuries he'd sustained from fighting Kenshin had all started healing nicely. With his left hand he knew he would have no difficulty pulling off his powerful double punch. This realization brought a wicked grin to his face that the female Keishichou agent was quick to pick up on.

"Sanosuke-san I hope you're not considering destroying your restraints again. You know we don't have any spares lying around so breaking them is only going to create an unnecessary problem for us."

Sanosuke sighed and relaxed his hand, fully aware of the problems that would ensue if he followed through with his plans for freedom and unrestricted movement. Tokio had been sure to explain the situation every time he even looked like he was thinking about blasting his restraints into smithereens.

"We're almost to Hokkaido Please just hold out a little longer. Once we're there my husband will be filling you in on the rest of your mission."

The statement from Tokio hit the ex-gangster with a surprising amount of force. In a flash he slid back up into proper sitting posture and stared at the beautiful woman sitting across from him. "S Saitoh" Sanosuke stammered. "Oh shit We're going to be seeing him today!?"

Tokio returned the stare with the same level of disbelief. "How many times have I explained this? Hajime is waiting for us in Hakodate. Once we meet up with him he'll be in charge of the operation. I told you this every time we went over our plans Don't tell me you weren't listening to me?"

"I was listening! I just didn't think I mean I didn't realize that we'd be seeing him _today_."

"Then let me explain it for you once again. Once we reach Hakodate my husband is going to be meeting us. The only thing separating us from Hokkaido is ten miles of water. We'll be there _soon_."

~//~

A two-hour ferry ride locked in a musty room did little to improve Sanosuke's opinions about incarceration. The fact that he was left alone to his own private musings didn't help his mood either. Sanosuke wasn't sure what he was feeling, but he decided that he didn't like it.

_I really don't want to have to deal with Saitoh When I left Japan I never thought I'd be seeing the bastard again But I guess Saitoh really has helped us out a lot Shishio Enishi without him we might not have been able to win. But I could never figure the guy out. Is he a friend? Or an enemy? There's only one thing I'm certain of the man hates my guts shit shit shit Why didn't I think about this BEFORE I agreed to help them out? Saitoh's just going to make a fool of me I can feel it The man doesn't need my help this is all just some twisted game he's playing to remind me how useless I am_

Sanosuke realized that he was clenching his teeth just a moment before his gums started bleeding from the pressure.

"Chikusho I don't wanna see Saitoh"

"Too bad. We're here!" Yahiko opened the door and it was only then that Sanosuke realized that the ferry had stopped moving. The young man motioned for him to get up and out of the small storage room they'd used as a cell.

Grumbling, Sano pushed himself to his feet. "You shouldn't listen in on people's private conversations"

"You shouldn't be having private conversations with yourself Or at least, you should keep your private thoughts in your own head, moron."

Sanosuke flinched visibly. "Don't call me that" Left unsaid was the fact that the insult was one of Saitoh's old favorite words to describe the ex-gangster. Judging from the young swordsman's grin, Yahiko had said it on purpose just to stir up more unpleasant memories. "By the way Yahiko Has Saitoh contacted you guys at all in the last five years?"

_If he's kept in touch with Kenshin and the others then maybe he's sorta become a friend_

"Nope, not at all. After we defeated Enishi the man totally disappeared" Yahiko shrugged and then gave the ex-gangster a serious look. "And don't call me Yahiko. If Tokio were around she'd yell at you." He lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "I'm supposed to be undercover, ya know?"

Sano nodded absently as he allowed the 'undercover' youth to escort him from the lower deck. Aoshi and Tokio met them on the main deck and without another a word, they disembarked from the ferry, taking their first step on Hokkaido's soil.

The other passengers had all been allowed to leave before the 'special police' removed their 'dangerous criminal'. It was a safety precaution for the general populace and a policy that did not bother Sanosuke in the least. There were few people left to gawk at him as his friends carted him off the dock with their hands locked firmly on his upper arms to keep him from escaping. After a week of public display, the ex-gangster was sick of the attention his appearance drew.

As he took his shuffling steps, the chains on his legs rattled against each other. He wasn't sure of their destination until he caught sight of the single carriage parked in front of their pier. A man dressed in a dark blue police uniform sat in the driver's seat, calmly resting the reins for the two horses in his lap. It was a well-built carriage of heavy construction that was probably used exclusively for prisoner transfers. The windows were nothing more than openings blocked by metal bars and covered by dark curtains.

The dark curtains covered all but one of the windows. A shadowy figure sitting inside the carriage held it open so he could see outside. Bars that hinted at the impossibility of escape did not stop the unmistakable puff of cigarette smoke from leaking out. The relative darkness of the interior made it impossible to recognize the man sitting in the carriage, but as Sanosuke stared at the figure, he could feel the person staring right back at him with cold amber eyes.

_There's no doubt about it Saitoh's waiting for me in that carriage I can feel his unmistakable aura_

Sanosuke came to an abrupt halt as the full realization hit. Aoshi and Yahiko hadn't predicted that he'd actually resist them and for a moment they too stopped and stood motionless. The air between the Keishichou agents and the carriage seemed to crackle as the ex-gangster engaged in a mental battle with the unseen man. The curtain dropped, concealing the figure from their sight but the former fighter for hire didn't take a single step.

_Saitoh Hajime The first time we met you shoved a sword through me I wonder what you have in store for me today?_

"Move it, Zanza" Tokio's quiet authoritative voice spurred him from behind.

_But there's no point in waiting to find out the answerIf I stand here any longer you're going to think I'm afraid of you. I'm coming Saitoh_

The short distance was cleared in a flash of shuffling steps that went unnoticed by the ex-gangster. His pulse quickened with a mixture of anticipation and trepidation as they reached the side of the armored carriage.

_Has the man changed? Will he see that I've changed? Will he be able to tell that I'm not the weakling he's always accused me of being? Will he be proud of what I've become?_

Sanosuke's eyes widened.

_Did I just think what I thought I thought?_

Shaking his head once, the ex-gangster attempted to clear away the nonsense his brain was notorious for creating.

_Proud? Why the hell would I expect Saitoh to be proud of me? My current strength has nothing to do with him_

He realized the thought was wrong the minute it popped into his head. The man he had always 'hated' had almost been directly responsibly for his self-improvements. Kenshin had done him a world of good, but it was Saitoh that Sanosuke had decided to surpass years ago as he kicked a rock into the tangled abyss that had once been Shishio's base.

_I've always wanted to surpass you Saitoh not just in strength but in everything_

Aoshi's hand slid into the latch that would open the door between Sanosuke and his rival. He suddenly dreaded the event and silently wished he could avoid confronting Saitoh indefinitely.

_I haven't had enough time I haven't perfected myself yet I haven't surpassed him yet!_

But the unthinkable happened. The door slowly opened. Hands on his arms and back propelled him toward the portal, forcing him inside. The man was waiting. Sitting on a hard metal bench, his legs were crossed casually and he held the stub of a cigarette between two white-gloved fingers. He watched impassively as Sanosuke hoisted himself inside, his cool amber gaze betraying nothing.

"Long time no see Rooster-head"

A single puff of smoke leapt out from the man's mouth and danced in front of the ex-gangster's face. His voice was as unreadable as his expression. In an instant, Sanosuke forced his thoughts into the back of his mind. If Saitoh figured out what he'd been thinking, Sanosuke was afraid the calculating man would find some way to use it against him.

_He can't know that I actually respect him_

"Did you miss me, Saitoh?" Cocky self-assurance and smart-assed remarks would suit their initial exchange much better. The grin he adopted would have been enough to assure the entire world that he was in charge of every element of his life, and not least of all, his current situation.

Its effect was powerless on the former third captain of the Shinsengumi. Saitoh did not respond at first, except to place the shortened cigarette in his mouth and inhale. As the smoke exited between his teeth, the man allowed a smirk to turn up one corner of his lips. "Not at all moron"

-----------------------

*dusts off hands* That's that, chapter 18 posted! Our first taste of the wolf... but I bet you want to really sink your teeth into some Saitoh and Sano and Saitoh/Tokio interactions. Well you'll just have to wait for the next chapter, ok?

I'd like to thank the awesome people who have taken the extra moment out of their life required to leave me a review. If you're reading this and you haven't reviewed, please do leave me a quick note at least. I'd like to know everyone's who's actually reading this and hear what you have to say about it. It makes posting worthwhile to receive your comments! Really! (and if you didn't know, it makes me edit/write faster!)

By the way, it's time (once again) for the Rurouni Kenshin Reader's Choice Awards 2001. Whether you've heard of it or not go check out the details at:

http://sekihara.dreamhost.com/rkreaders/

Vote for your favorite RK fics of the year! Deadline for nominations is March 15th! (I believe)

**Next Chapter: **More Saitoh, more Sano, more PLOT (get out your swampers, we're going to be wading through all the plot!), and did I mention more Saitoh? You won't wanna miss it!   



	20. Chapter 19: Respect

Author: Arashi (marenski@hotmail.com)

Website: www.kenkaya.com

Beta Reader: Karina Kineshi (I just had to post, let me know if you find any errors and I'll correct 'em!)

Disclaimer: Sano? Saitoh? Yahiko? Aoshi? Kenshin? The girls? Watsuki-sama made 'em up, I just play with them! If I was making money off of this it wouldn't be posted on ff.net, silly! 

-----------------------

**Chapter 19: Respect**

The carriage was definitely too small.

From the outside, the vehicle had seemed amply large, but once Sagara Sanosuke found himself inside its confines, he realized how wrong his first impression had been. Of course, it might not have been entirely the carriage's fault for the oppressing discomfort he was feeling.

_Damn that smug bastardalways making me look like an idiot. The Pacific Ocean is barely enough distance between me and Saitoh, let alone this carriage! I swear, one of these days I'm gonna kick his ass once and for all!_

After the initial disappointing exchange, Saitoh's attention had immediately left the ex-gangster. With a nod, he acknowledged Aoshi as the tall ninja pulled himself inside and positioned himself on the far side of their 'prisoner'.

"Shinomori."

Aoshi returned the gesture. "Saitoh."

It was a fairly cold reception, but at least it wasn't a rude one. Sanosuke could tell that Saitoh held a fair amount of respect for the former okashira of the Oniwabanshu. The two men would never be friends, but at least they shared common goals and ideals.

_Respect yeah, the psychopathic killers respect each other go figure._

Yahiko entered next. The young swordsman slid into place beside Sanosuke and gave Saitoh a calculating look. He kept his mouth shut, and for a moment, the ex-gangster wished he'd been as wise.

It was Saitoh who broke the silence before it could settle in. "It seems the brat has finally grown up." He commented, as he ran a critical eye over Yahiko. At that point, Sanosuke knew he would have made some sort of 'terse' reply, but the young swordsman only narrowed his eyes. Even though he was almost ten years his senior, Sanosuke couldn't help but admire Yahiko's composure. The boy knew better than to provoke the wolf.

Saitoh sensed that fact as well. An _almost_ friendly look pulled at the edges of the cold mask he tried to pass off for a face. "That was a compliment."

The sincerity in Saitoh's voice helped to prove the validity of the comment, but Yahiko still glared at the former Shinsengumi for half a heartbeat before he replied. "Your compliments need work, Saitoh."

The remark elicited three distinct sounds from the back of Saitoh's throat that Sanosuke unhappily realized were laughs of amusement.

_Well damn, even Yahiko gets along with Saitoh better than I do._

The last member of their team seemed to be concluding some business with the driver, and a moment later she entered the carriage and sat down on the bench beside her husband. A single impartial nod, much like the one Aoshi had been given in greeting, was Saitoh's first response.

"Hello Tokio." The comment carried only the barest hint of acknowledgement, let alone affection.

The muscles in Sanosuke's jaw involuntarily went lax, casing his mouth to hang partially open.

_The hell? What kind of greeting is that for your damn wife, you twisted bastard? Sounds like ya don't even know her!_

Tokio bowed her head politely. "Hello Hajime."

Her reciprocated indifference doubled Sanosuke's feeling of confusion.

"Are you two married or what!?"

If men could pluck their words from the air, Sanosuke would have. Saitoh's reaction to the comment sent chills down the ex-gangster's spine. It vaguely reminded him of his first run in with the wolf when the unfamiliar man had called him by name and pulled a concealed sword from his back. The word 'terrified' would have been an understatement for the emotion the ex-gangster was suddenly experiencing. Saitoh's amber eyes bore into him with such intensity that Sanosuke found himself holding his breath, lest he make another comment that would seal him to some unspeakable fate.

The wolf of Mibu's look was death itself.

_Holy shit! What the hell did I say??_

The carriage started moving, but inside, no one even blinked. Yahiko and Aoshi could both sense that Sanosuke had stepped over some invisible boundary and they had no intention of sharing in Saitoh's wrath.

How much time passed exactly, no one would later recall. But after what seemed like an eternity, Saitoh turned to his wife as though nothing had happened and jumped right into a small debriefing session.

"Excellent work Tokio. Judging from the reports you've been sending, everything has gone according to plan. Our tracks have been covered enough that I doubt our enemies will be able to discover anything about this operation."

As Saitoh spoke, the other three men could only stare in astonishment. Once it became obvious that his life was spared, Sano allowed air to fill his lungs once again. He exhaled in a long sigh that was cut short as Yahiko elbowed him in the ribs for being annoying. The last thing they needed was to draw Saitoh's attention again.

Fortunately, the husband and wife ignored them as Tokio bowed her head once again, modestly accepting the compliment from Saitoh. "Thank you."

Saitoh turned to address his three part-time agents. His tone left no room for argument. "Tomorrow morning we will be leaving for the provincial prison. We will be making a very brief stopover at one of our safe houses for some specific instructions and your final briefing. From there it will be a direct insertion into the prison and hopefully only a two week span of time inside." Saitoh took one slow drag on his cigarette before tossing it out the window. The curtain he'd raised to clear a path dropped back in place as he refocused his attention on Sano. "The rooster-head will be spending the night under the care of the Hakodate Police." He shifted his gaze to Aoshi. "You and the boy will guard him tonight and make sure he doesn't do anything stupid." The wolf of Mibu ignored the ex-gangster's visible flinch. "Tokio and I will arrive in the morning to pick you all up."

"You don't hafta worry about me behaving myself" Sano muttered.

_Like I want to screw stuff up when I've already come so far? What does he take me for, a complete idiot?_

"Of course I do." Saitoh stated with a high measure of superiority. "You _are_ a complete idiot, after all."

_It's like the bastard is reading my mind! Dammit, I hate him!_

"Why you" Sano would have held up one of his fists threateningly, but the wooden handcuffs made that motion impossible. The joint movement of his hands only served to anger the ex-gangster further as he was reminded of his predicament.

Saitoh only seemed amused by the street fighter's frustration, a fact that did not bode well for continued harmony in the cramped prisoner carriage.

"Moron"

"Chikusho Not only do I have to deal with being locked up like a damn prisoner, but I have to deal with your insults as well?" Sano growled.

"_Like_ a prisoner?" Saitoh's cruel smile held unmasked irony. "You _are_ a prisoner."

"Dammit, you know what I mean!"

"No, I'm afraid I don't."

"Don't piss me off Saitoh!" Sano gave the Shinsengumi fair warning. "Do I have to remind you that I'm here willingly? There's _nothing_ stopping me from walking outta here except the agreement I made with Tokio-san that I'd help!" The hint of challenge did not go unnoticed by anyone in the carriage. Sanosuke's jaw and fists clenched as he mentally dared Saitoh to continue his harassment.

"_Nothing_?" Saitoh was genuinely amused by the ex-gangster's audacity. "Believe what you want, idiot." He laughed, placing the last straw on the proverbial camel's back.

Sanosuke's pride was irrefutably damaged.

A moment later, something snapped.

His self-control was the first thing to go, followed shortly by his restraints. Twisting his arms in opposite directions, Sano used his forearms and brute strength to crack and splinter the solidly constructed handcuffs. His movements were so fast and unexpected that neither Aoshi nor Yahiko had time to react.

Only Saitoh was ready.

The amusement was gone from his face, replaced by an expression of calculating seriousness that could only be compared to the look of a wolf that had spotted its prey. His previously dormant ken ki spiked into existence as his unnamed katana snapped free of its sheath, the deadly point searching out and finding the ex-gangster's vulnerable throat. The air in the carriage seemed to swirl in the eddies left from the wake of his sword's path

And the sudden flash of movement inside the carriage came to an abrupt halt.

It only took Sano a single heartbeat to realize that he was a dead man. His brain registered the incredible speed with which the former Shinsengumi had drawn his blade. Crossing Saitoh meant taking your life into your own hands, but Sanosuke didn't regret his actions. If he had to die to settle the score between himself and Saitoh, then so be it.

_Sagara Sanosuke doesn't take shit from anyone._

By the time his heart had beat a second time, he came to the stunning conclusion that he was, in fact, still alive and surprisingly unharmed. Sano swallowed once, feeling the tip of Saitoh's blade scratch across his Adam's apple as it bobbed up and down. The former Shinsengumi's precision was inhuman. He'd managed to draw his blade in an instant while bringing the tip within a few millimeters of piercing Sanosuke's flesh.

Sanosuke understood that he wasn't the smartest man in the world, but at least he knew when he was defeated. The wood splinters from his handcuffs were still falling from his wrists but whatever he'd been planning to do with his freedom slipped from his mind before he'd gotten the chance to truly consider it. His reaction had been natural, almost instinctual, and the need he'd felt to lash out suddenly coalesced as a single thought in his mind.

From the minute he'd hauled himself inside the carriage, he'd had one driving motivation and one goal. He'd said he was there because he'd made an agreement with Tokio, but he knew that was only a small part of the real reason for agreeing to help. To come on this mission, he'd given up his time, his safety, his freedom, and most importantly; he'd allowed himself to be separated from the woman he'd spent five years thinking about. He was there for a reason, and he decided that it was time to get what he deserved.

If he could convince Saitoh, it would be like convincing the rest of the world.

Saitoh's amber eyes were locked with his and he returned the stare unflinchingly. One wrong move could mean death, he could tell from the way the former Shinsengumi held his katana, poised to strike. He was walking dangerous ground, and he knew it.

Sanosuke gathered his wits about him, standing firm and sending every ounce of his confidence and strength into his gaze. Though he had the obvious disadvantage, the two appeared to reach a stalemate. Neither the former third captain of the Shinsengumi or the ex-fighter for hire would back down. The tension in the carriage was palatable, and the other three people inside knew better than to interfere.

After another painful silence elapsed, the ex-gangster decided it was time to make his demands. "All I want is a little respect, Saitoh." He spoke calmly and evenly while he stared down the wolf.

_That's why I'm here That's why I'm doing this. It's about damn time that I get a little respectespecially from this bastard who has done nothing but mock me from the first time we met. He's never admitted that I was anything other than a nuisance If he really wants my help, he's going to have to beg for it now or at least show me a little appreciation._

The former Shinsengumi's reaction wasn't exactly what Sano had been hoping for. He lowered his katana and sheathed it quickly, smirking the entire time. "Moron"

Sanosuke felt his hopes fading.

_Argh! At least a moment ago he was taking me seriously even if he _was _considering ending my life! Now, I'm right back to where I started!_

He felt his frustration building once again, and he knew he'd be powerless to restrain himself when he snapped a second time. His reason for coming along on the mission was rendered pointless.

Before Sanosuke could do anything else, Saitoh spoke up once again. "You want respect?" His voice carried a hint of mockery. The ex-gangster lowered his angry gaze hoping to lessen the brunt of the reprimand he knew he was about to receive. His ego wouldn't make it though in one piece if Saitoh decided to pull out all the stops.

"You're a fool"

He could still hear the smirk in Saitoh's voice, even if he couldn't see the look on his face. Sano's muscles tightened like steel cords.

_Here it comes he's about to tear me apart_

"What makes you think, for a moment, that I would have gone through all the trouble of getting you here for this mission if I didn't at least have some respect for your abilities?"

It took a moment for the words to sink in Sanosuke had been so mentally prepared to ignore everything he was about to hear.

_What? Did he just say what I thought he said?_

He glanced up hesitantly, expecting the cruel man to take it all back and laugh in his face.

"You really must be an idiot if you haven't realized this for yourself" Saitoh pulled out a pack of cigarettes, ignited and took his first puff while the wheels in Sano's brain started moving.

_He's got a point why didn't I think of this sooner? Why would he go through all the trouble to track me down and convince me to come on this mission if he didn't need me and respect me? In fact, it's almost like he was _waiting _for me to come back just so he could get my help! He could have gotten Kenshin or Aoshi or Yahiko at any time but he waited until I showed up! Maybe he really DOES respect me!?_

"Of course," Saitoh interrupted his thoughts. "Respecting your _abilities_ and respecting _you_ are two completely separate things. Don't let this go to your head. You _are_ a complete moron, after all."

As the former Shinsengumi spoke he reached below his seat and retrieved a set of metal handcuffs from a compartment. Sanosuke was too busy navigating the different thoughts that were coursing around in his brain to notice when the other man attached the new restraints firmly to his wrists. When he finally did notice them, all he did was blink and stare, wondering how Saitoh had chained him again without him seeing.

"I had those specially designed for you." Saitoh's cigarette balanced between his two gloved fingers confidently. "I figured the wooden ones would be too flimsy to hold you."

Sano grinned from ear to ear and leaned forward expectantly. "Was that another compliment?"

_He's a bastard but maybe he really can treat me with the respect I deserve. As Yahiko already pointed out, it's hard to tell when he's actually complimenting us!_

"No." The former Shinsengumi's face was emotionless. "If you weren't such an idiot I wouldn't have had to worry about you trying to break out of the wooden ones."

~//~

When they arrived at the Hakodate Police Station, Saitoh reminded them all to act accordingly and avoid drawing unnecessary attention. The three men exited the carriage and headed inside the building, disappearing from sight.

"They're finally gone" Saitoh slumped back against his seat and inhaled a breath of smoke from his cigarette, closing his eyes in satisfaction. The nicotine coursed through his body, relaxing him doubly well now that his three walking headaches were gone. He found himself wondering how he would survive a day or two of briefings when he'd barely been able to deal with them for one short carriage ride.

He felt movement at his side and opened his eyes to appraise his companion. She closed the distance between them, sliding over on the carriage seat until the side of her leg brushed against his. With a smile, she reached out and plucked the cigarette from his lips.

"I thought I told you to cut back Hajime?" She leaned across his body tantalizingly, tossing the cigarette out the window with one smooth motion.

"I have." He smirked, putting his hands on the sides of her torso and guiding her onto his lap.

"You know you can't lie to me." She smiled at him seductively, forcing Saitoh to capture her lips with his own. It was all the former Shinsengumi could do to keep himself from tossing her down on the seat and making love to her on the spot.

"Mmm" He finally pulled away from his wife and gave her face the attention it deserved. How he could wake up without seeing it first thing every morning, he still wasn't sure. "I missed you so much."

"Trying to change the subject are we?" She alternated between playful and seductive more naturally than most women blink.

"For a chance to spend time with you I'll even put up with that idiot rooster-head."

"Oh Hajime That's so sweet of you to say that." She cupped his face with her hand, her eyes sparkling with amusement. "But you know You really should go easy on Sagara. He wasn't trying to be rude to the two of us. You shouldn't let him bother you so easily."

"What are you talking about?" Saitoh raised an eyebrow. "I was simply checking to see if he could break out of his restraints. I wasn't particularly angry with him."

"There you go again You really are a terrible liar." She smiled warmly, her voice without any trace of sarcasm or reproach. "I felt the way you tensed when he asked if the two of us are actually married. From that moment I knew you were going to make things difficult."

Saitoh snorted. "That moron doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut. How dare he question the two of us?"

Tokio wrapped her fingers around his sword calloused hand, quieting him before he had the chance to start yelling his frustrations. "I know Hajime I know. But how can you expect someone like him to ever understand the two of us?"

"Good point." He squeezed her hand gently. "Well then we've got the rest of the evening to ourselves. Whatever shall we do to pass the time?" It was more of an invitation than a question. Both people knew exactly what the other was thinking.

Tokio leaned against her husband, placing her head on his shoulder. "I can think of at least one thing." Turning her head up toward his, she gently brushed her lips against his neck, trailing up toward his face with a series of tender kisses. Only one person on the face of the planet knew the secret to controlling Mibu's Wolf.

~//~

The evening came and went, each agent passing the time in their own way. When dawn broke, Saitoh and Tokio arrived as planned and picked up the other three to begin their journey north. The Keishichou Safe House was another half day's journey. Time passed slowly in the carriage as minor conflicts between personalities came and went. It was late afternoon by the time they reached their destination. When they pulled up to a western style mansion bigger than Tani's, Sanosuke could only whistle.

"Where'd ya get the money for a place like this?" It didn't take him long to recover his voice.

Saitoh had a habit of staring at the ex-gangster for about thirty seconds before answering his questions during their trip. "How much money do you think the Meiji Government has?" He answered questions with questions in the hope that Sanosuke would start thinking for himself.

There was a pause as the ex-gangster considered the question. "A lot."

Saitoh brushed past the extremely intelligent answer provided to his question. "They have a habit of taking care of their operatives. We do hold the country together, after all."

"You too will be amply rewarded for your services." Tokio added from her place beside the former Shinsengumi. She had taken it upon herself to make sure that no fighting broke out during the ride.

Yahiko and Sanosuke blinked once and then gave each other a dumbfounded look.

"We're getting paid?" Sanosuke questioned.

"Of course, moron." Saitoh reached for his front pocket but stopped before he could pull out one of his cigarettes. The men in the carriage didn't guess his reason for refraining, though she was sitting right there with them. "Did you think you were simply being forced to offer your services for nothing?"

"Yeah" Yahiko nodded. "It's not like Kenshin or any of us have ever been rewarded for our efforts before."

Saitoh scowled. "Do you really believe that? Remember the Shishio incident?" He didn't wait for the two of them to reply. He didn't need to. "Before you even made it back to Tokyo the substantial debt that had been piling up on that rundown dojo was erased. The Kamiya girl received a few _anonymous_ donations as well I'm sure she didn't feel any need to tell you freeloaders. Every trip you took to the Akabeko for the next few months was subsidized by the Meiji."

Sanosuke worked his jaw in silence, angrily considering eating out at the mercy of the government that he so despised.

_Oh man I bet Jou-chan didn't tell me just because she knew I would have been furious if I found out I guess it makes sense_

He soon realized that there was no point in worrying about something that had happened five years earlier and instead, he focused on the new information he'd been given.

_I'm getting paid! I'm getting paid! I'm getting paid! Wait till Megumi finds out! She's gonna be so proud of me. Yeah, who says I don't know how to make money!? This'll teach everyone not to doubt me._

Saitoh pushed open one of the carriage doors and exited with his wife on his heels. Sanosuke tore himself away from his thoughts as Aoshi beckoned him out of the vehicle. Yahiko was the last to step out into the fresh mountain air.

"So uh, if this place is owned and operated by the Keishichou how about you take these damn things off?" Thoughts of freedom were never far from Sanosuke's mind. He held up his wrists with the offending metal handcuffs holding them together.

"No. Someone might be spying on us." Saitoh had an unlit cigarette in one hand and his matches in the other.

"No one is spying on us here. This area is top secret." Tokio informed them with a scowl at her husband. It was the most emotion they'd seen from her since they'd met up with Saitoh. She didn't wait for permission while she removed a key ring from her husband's belt and unlocked the ex-gangster.

"Thanks Tokio-san." Sano rubbed his wrists while the small woman unfastened his leg restraints.

"It's the least I can do Sagara-san. You'll be experiencing more restriction soon enough."

"But for now" Saitoh interrupted. "We have to go over the rest of the plans for the mission."

Sanosuke's shoulders slumped, but he quickly threw them back and placed his fists on his sides, standing akimbo. "Mission schmission, is that all you ever think about Saitoh?" Perhaps he could convince the former Shinsengumi to give them a break.

Saitoh pulled the cigarette from his lips and eyed the ex-gangster darkly. "Not at all. Sometimes I think about randomly killing morons to make the world a better place." He took a drag on his cigarette and blew the smoke into Sanosuke's face. "But since I know not all of you have the same mental prowess as Shinomori, I've scheduled some relaxation time for you all."

Sano suddenly perked up. "Really?" He didn't want to get too hopeful. Saitoh couldn't really be trusted.

"No, I lied." The cigarette was back in his mouth and bobbing up and down while he spoke. When Sanosuke's shoulders slumped once again, Saitoh rolled his eyes. "Moron"

"Of course you get some free time." It was Tokio who smoothed things over, once again.

~//~

The free time they were awarded came first, followed immediately by the first in their series of final briefings. Tokio had explained a good deal about their mission on their trip to Hokkaido, but they soon discovered how many details she had left out.

"This is the layout of the prison." Saitoh circulated intricate maps of the Hokkaido Provincial Prison. Aoshi stared at it intently while Sanosuke and Yahiko gave them slightly less interested glances. "Memorize it." The former Shinsengumi ordered, apparently not appreciating the younger agents' indifference.

Sanosuke looked around the room as Saitoh began speaking, more engrossed in his immediate surroundings than the information he was being provided. Oddly enough, the room wasn't even that interesting. There was one large desk, a chalkboard, and display stand along with a few rows of simple wooden chairs. Aoshi, Yahiko, and he were sitting in the center three seats in the front row, directly in front of the desk. Saitoh's lanky form stretched out over the desk that was piled high with stacks of paper and folders. Tokio stood to the side, assisting her husband.

"The Hokkaido Provincial Prison is built directly over hot springs. They used the natural heating and special construction to keep the place warm. Due to the elevation, there is always snow cover outside the prison. This creates a very interesting situation." Saitoh paused, collecting his thoughts before continuing. "Prisoners live warm inside while around them the temperature can be lethally cold. To help make sure that prisoners can't survive outside the prison, the uniform is a simple long yukata made of very thin material."

Tokio procured a light purple and green yukata and held it aloft for them to inspect. Sanosuke cringed at the color and the style. "You're kidding." He glanced at Saitoh, looking for conformation. "Are you saying that _I'm _going to have to wear _that_??" He pointed incredulously at the horrendous prison uniform. Yahiko snickered while Saitoh glared in the ex-gangster's direction.

"As you can see" Saitoh continued his briefing as though he had not been interrupted. "The warmth provided by the uniform would not be enough to keep body temperature at a safe level if worn outside in the snow."

"No way in _hell_ am I going to wear one of those" Sanosuke muttered under his breath. He slid his hands into his white drawstring pants for reassurance, appreciating the feel of his familiar comfortable outfit. Pants, an open gi, bandages wrapped around his waist and ankles; the clothes were symbolic of his carefree nature and he had no desire to part with them. He pitied the fools who might try to separate him and his outfit in the prison.

It was only when Saitoh lifted a white sheet of paper to reveal a large photograph of a building in the mountains that Sanosuke realized the former Shinsengumi was still talking. If he'd missed anything important, the ex-gangster figured he could ask Yahiko about it after the meeting was over, until then he would refocus his attention.

"making it the first stopover before entering the prison." Saitoh finished his sentence, leaving Sanosuke to wonder what he'd been talking about to begin with. "After this check-in station, you will be escorted up into the prison itself by way of this trail." The former Shinsengumi had a wooden pointer in hand and he roughly indicated the trail that seemed to lead up the mountain behind the building. "This is the only publicly known pathway to the prison. If a prisoner were successful in escaping and somehow managed to survive the elements, they would have to come down this trail and they would be recaptured at this check-in station." Moving the pointer, he indicated the building.

Aoshi silently raised his hand, causing Saitoh to raise an eyebrow at the ninja's formality. With a subtle head movement, he urged the former Okashira to voice his question or concern.

"Do _we_ have another pathway down the mountain?" Aoshi was collected and cool as the snowy mountain in the picture.

"Of course." Saitoh stated, a ghost of a smile pulling at the corner of his mouth. "Its location is detailed on the back side of your map handouts."

Aoshi immediately flipped his sheet and glanced over the writing. A moment later he nodded his head in understanding and shifted his gaze back to the former Shinsengumi.

"The pathway is top secret Keishichou information. Not even the head of the prison staff knows about it." Saitoh seemed particularly proud of the fact, though he was trying not to let it show. Clearing his throat, he continued with the briefing. "The check-in station is home to most of the prison records and information. If there is any hard evidence to be found of the conspiracy, it will likely be somewhere there."

"So one of us is going to have to stay at the check-in station?" Yahiko asked casually as he leaned back in his chair, putting his hands to the back of his head. "Well, I want to stay where I can keep an eye on Sano."

"That's fine." Saitoh's words were brisk, hinting at the fact that it wasn't any of their places to say what they would or would not do. "You're not good enough to do what I need done anyhow."

Yahiko lowered his hands and sat forward, accepting the admonishment in silence with his hands clenched at his sides.

Turning his attention to Aoshi, Saitoh continued. "I'll be briefing you in private about the check-in station, Shinomori." The former Okashira nodded.

"Alright _gentlemen_." Saitoh's predatory smile and ironic stressing of the word 'gentlemen' unnerved two out of three of the new Keishichou agents. "Now on to the serious stuff."

Sanosuke blinked. "The rest of this wasn't serious?" He turned to Yahiko who could only shrug.

Saitoh, ignoring the ex-gangster as usual, flipped the picture of the check-in station up and revealing a large painting or photograph of a traditionally uniformed man. "This" Saitoh used his pointer to draw their attention to the visual aid. "Is Enomoto Takeaki, former Navy officer of the Bakufu, and a man who tried to set up his own government here in Hokkaido after the fall of Tokugawa. He is currently a prisoner at the Hokkaido Provincial Prison and it is likely that _he_ is behind this conspiracy. Even if he is not directly responsible for whatever is going on inside, he will most definitely be involved. It will be _your_ job," Saitoh used the pointer to single out Sanosuke. "As a prisoner, to earn his trust and find out his plans and his intentions. As a prison guard," The former Shinsengumi turned to Yahiko. "It will be your job to find out the hierarchy in the prison. We suspect that the prison guards treat Enomoto quite differently than the average prisoner."

Yahiko seemed to take the message to heart as he leaned forward, intently memorizing the man's face for future reference. Sano only yawned.

"Are you paying attention?" Saitoh shot the former gangster a dark look.

Sanosuke took his time finishing his yawn, stifling it slightly with the back of his bandaged right hand. When he was finished he grinned at the Keishichou agent. "Yeah, yeah He's the bad guy. Got it."

If Saitoh were a man to be flustered, he would have become so instantly. Instead, cold anger and frustration were brought to bear against the ignorant ex-gangster. "You apparently don't understand the situation very well." It took a lot for Saitoh to maintain his composure. As it was, his words were edged and lined with steel. "This man will decide if you _live _or _die_ in that prison." Saitoh's scare tactics were rewarded as Sanosuke's smile leaked from his face. "This man is a _genius_. If he has orchestrated the entire conspiracy from inside the prison then there is no telling what he is capable of."

The three newly recruited Keishichou agents knew Saitoh well enough to know that when he spoke so highly of someone, it was not without cause.

"I'm assuming you've all heard the information about the missing naval vessels?" Their silence was answer enough for the former Shinsengumi. "It is quite likely that he has been building up a small fleet somewhere off the coast of Hokkaido. If he is responsible for the hijacked shipments of weaponry, he should have enough of an arsenal in his control to take over Hokkaido easily." Saitoh paused, letting his words sink in. He took just long enough to allow his emotions cool slightly. "This man is dangerous and we are the only ones standing in his way. If we do not discover proof of his conspiracy, the Meiji government may suffer the same fate as the Tokugawa Shogunate"

Sanosuke's brown eyes clouded over at the mention of the government. His jaw clenched and unclenched as the five occupants of the briefing room sat in silence, absorbing the new information. "Maybe that's not such a bad thing, Saitoh." His words visibly affected the former Shinsengumi, drawing an angry stare. "I mean what do _you_ and _I_ really care about the Meiji government?"

_It's an issue now One that I'd better confront before I go any father with this stupid mission Can I really put my past behind me and _defend_ the Meiji government?_

Yahiko opened his mouth to protest but he stopped when Saitoh held up a white-gloved hand.

"Moron If Enomoto overthrows the Meiji Government, many innocent lives will be lost. I thought you wanted the people of Japan to be able to live their lives in peace?" Saitoh searched the face of the former member of the Sekihoutai, finding hope as Sanosuke's look softened slightly.

"You're right" Sanosuke nodded. "I _do_ want the people to be allowed to live in peace. But what about _you_, Saitoh? Why are _you_ doing this? I've never understood why you joined the Meiji after fighting against them as a Shinsengumi If you can explain that then maybe I'll be able to forget about my grievances and really be able to focus on the mission"

Saitoh considered the request in silence and for a moment Sanosuke thought the man would refuse to answer his questions.

_This feels like the last hurdle I have to pass If Saitoh can explain why he's doing this, I feel like it'll make it that much easier for me to do what needs to be done. I've never loved the Meiji and if they're the ones being sacrificed here, I could care less. But I don't want to see innocent people suffer Saitoh's obviously figured something out that I just can't see Maybe that's one more reason why I actually respect the bastard?_

"The Meiji government may be far from perfect" Saitoh finally spoke. "But as long as I am able to deliver justice I am serving my purpose. 'Aku, Soku, Zan' This will always be my motto. Even today I continue to live as a Shinsengumi." Saitoh's hand drifted to the katana at his belt. His fingers wrapped around the hilt, it's constant presence giving him all the solace he needed. "It is enough for me to realize that the Meiji government may one day become the government it claims itself to be. Fighting against them will only bring about needless bloodshed and hardship."

_With Saitoh, it's as simple as 'Aku, Soku, Zan' but I guess That's good enough. 'Maybe one day the Meiji will live up to our expectations?' I don't know about that but I guess there's nothing wrong with a little hope. At the very least, I do feel like I need to do my part to make sure that the people trying to live their lives in Japan can do so in peace Kenshin and Jou-chan, Yahiko and Tsubame and maybe one day Me and Megumi_

Thoughts of a bright future that he'd never really considered began to dance around in his head, and once again he smiled. It was completely genuine, uncharacteristically devoid of mirth and ego. "Alright." Sanosuke clenched his fist and held it aloft, pulling it down sharply as he spoke to emphasize his commitment. "Let's do this! Let's figure out what this bastard is up to and put a stop to it!"   


-----------------------

Sorry for the looooooong wait people. Ever hear of finals? April is the worst month to be a college student... I _should_ be working on one of my papers right now. *sigh* But I just couldn't... not when I know that some people out there (not many, but at least two or three) were waiting on pins and needles for this next chapter. Hope everyone enjoyed it, and _do_ let me know what I did right and what I did wrong, ya hear? 

And here's a **Special Thanks** to all the people who nominated and have been voting for "Run to You" in the RKRC Awards. Thanks so much for the support! If you haven't done your voting yet go check it out here:

**http://sekihara.dreamhost.com/rkreaders/**

**Vote** for your favorite RK fics of the year! Voting ends April 27! (I believe)

**A Question Answered: **carlyd, here's an answer for your question. I will be jumping back to the dojo and dealing with the people who were left behind. Maybe not next chapter, but almost assuredly the chapter after. Don't worry, _everyone _still has their own important parts to play! (Sano can't hog the spotlight, that'd go straight to his head)

**Shameless Plugs: **If you haven't read the tribute fics out there, I suggest you do! I wrote one called "Our Sanosukes" and Karina has "Our Megumis"! It's good stuff! Tributes not only to the characters, but to the authors who have made the characters their own. You can also find tributes to Kenshin, Kaoru, Tomoe, Yahiko, maybe Tsubame, and who knows who else! Go read 'em! 

**Next Chapter: **If Aoshi, Sano, and Yahiko can survive the rest of the briefings, it's gonna be prison time! Join us next time as the 'shit hits the fan'. You won't wanna miss it! 


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